Category Archives: Uncategorized

Four Artists of the Floating World

Posted on January 19, 2021 by toshidama

Toshidama Japanese Prints is starting 2021 with a close look at four of the leading artists of the Japanese woodblock scene. The gallery frequently shows 4 x 4 shows – exhibitions that focus on just four prints by each artist. … Continue reading →

Posted in Edo, Ichikawa Danjuro, Japanese prints, japanese woodblock prints, kabuki theatre, Kunichika, Kunisada, musha-e, Toyokuni I, ukiyo-e, Uncategorized, utagawa, yoshitoshi | Tagged floating world, Japanese prints, Japanese Woodblock Prints, Kabuki, Kunichika, Kunisada, musha-e, Toshidama Gallery, Toyokuni I, Ukiyo-e, Yoshitoshi | Leave a comment

Wormholes in Japanese Prints

Posted on January 18, 2021 by toshidama

The print pictured below is a very rare warrior triptych by Kunisada; a musha-e. The worm damage is very minor but it set me thinking about the extraordinary history embodied in these three sheets of paper. Continue reading →

Posted in Asian Art, Floating World, japanese woodblock prints, Kunisada, musha-e, samurai, Uncategorized | Tagged History of the world in, Julian Barnes, Minamoto Clan, Taira Clan | Leave a comment

Life Through a Deluxe Lens

Posted on October 30, 2020 by toshidama

By the middle of the nineteenth century in Japan, an extraordinary art form had developed which had taken the basic single-colour woodblock print, (a form of wet ink relief reproduction common for centuries in Europe and Asia) and made it … Continue reading →

Posted in Chushingura, Hirosada, Ichikawa Danjuro, Japanese prints, japanese woodblock prints, kabuki theatre, Kunichika, Kunisada, Osaka Prints, Toyokuni III, ukiyo-e, Uncategorized, Woodblock print | Tagged Deluxe Woodblock Print, Hirosada, Ichikawa Danjuro, Japanese prints, Japanese Woodblock Prints, Kiyosada, Kunichika, Kunisada, Nishiki-e, Osaka Print, Ukiyo-e, ukiyo-e art | Leave a comment

Japanese Prints and the Tradition of Story Telling

Posted on September 17, 2020 by toshidama

Complex narrative lies at the heart of traditional Japanese culture. From the very beginnings, the Japanese were devoted to the structure of sophisticated narrative. The first true novel, the 11th century Genji monogatari – “The Tale of the Genji”- is … Continue reading →

Posted in 47 Ronin, Chushingura, Japanese prints, japanese woodblock prints, kabuki theatre, Kunichika, Kunisada, Kuniyoshi, ukiyo-e, Uncategorized | Tagged Genji Monogatari, Genpei War, Heiki Monogatari, Japanese prints, Japanese Woodblock Prints, Kabuki, Kunichika, Kunisada, kuniyoshi, Toshidama Gallery, Ukiyo-e | 2 Comments

Tales Of Old Japan

Posted on June 29, 2020 by toshidama

The new selection of prints online at Toshidama Japanese Prints takes inspiration from a book published by an English aristocrat in 1871. They are a random collection of folk tales, myths and stories from before the great modernisation of Japan … Continue reading →

Posted in Japanese prints, japanese woodblock prints, Kunichika, Kunisada, Kuniyoshi, Lord Redesdale, Otokodate, ukiyo-e, Uncategorized | Tagged Japanese prints, Japanese Woodblock Prints, Kunichika, Kunisada, kuniyoshi, Tales of Old Japan, Ukiyo-e | Leave a comment

A Portrait of Ichimura Uzaemon XIII

Posted on May 8, 2020 by toshidama

On these pages are some light hearted guides to the villains and heroes of the kabuki stage. We’re calling them ‘Kabuki All-stars’. The current exhibition at the Toshidama Gallery called Ten Artists of the Floating World, features twenty three prints … Continue reading →

Posted in Hiroshige, Japanese Art, Japanese prints, japanese woodblock prints, kabuki theatre, Kunisada, ukiyo-e, ukiyo-e art, Uncategorized | Tagged floating world, Hiroshige, Ichimura Uzaemon XIII, Kabuki, Kunisada, Moronobu, Nishiki-e, Timon Screech, Ukiyo-e, Willem van Royen | Leave a comment

Jasper Johns: Skin and Oshiguma

Posted on May 6, 2020 by toshidama

The print pictured above is by the outstanding American artist Jasper Johns. The print was made by Johns coating his skin with oil and then impressing his face and hands onto a sensitised litho plate. Charcoal was rubbed onto the … Continue reading →