Shokonsha keidai Furansu okyokuab (no) zu

(Translation) Big French circus on the grounds of Shokonsha (Yasukuni) shrine.

This center panel from the original tryptic is showing a circus at Yasukuni Jinja, originally called Shokonsha, Tokyo, Japan, with acrobats, trapeze artists, and horseback stunt riders. The scenes were painted as a tryptic, which are woodblock prints created at the same time with each panel "standing for itself" and displayed separately or together.

Utagawa Hiroshige, (1797-1858), born Ando Tokutaro, is a well-known Ukiyo-e artist, celebrated for his lyricism in capturing the great landscapes of Japan and for portraying the lives of common people in Edo, (Tokyo). Hiroshige's uniquely innovative construction, powerful lines and wealth of color greatly influenced modern painters in Europe.

In 1811, his family apprenticed him to the Ukiyo-e artist Utagawa Toyohiro (1773--1828). In 1812, Hiroshige received the name Utagawa Hiroshige from Toyohiro, marking his acceptance into the Utagawa school, the largest in Ukiyo-e. Hiroshige was an official in the government and tasked to produce sketches and drawings of various ceremonies in different parts of Japan. Further journeys followed, which inspired him to produce more landscapes. He traveled widely in Japan and captured many of the landscapes in a series of woodblocks. He is thought to have produced over 5,400 woodblock prints.

Unlike other artists who used symbols of major geographic locations in their paintings and never actually traveled to the site, Hiroshige traveled extensively to create his images. While he claimed to simply reproduce sketches of just what he had seen, he did say, referring to "The Hundred Views of Mt. Fuji" "This small set of prints is too limited to draw everything in all its details. So there are many places where I had to abbreviate things, but as much as possible I made the compositions true to life. For those who can take long trips, please bring this book along and compare my scenes to the actual scenes. Please forgive the clumsiness of my technique."--Ryusai [Hiroshige]

The Impressionists were able to view his work at the Paris Expositions Universelles of 1855, 1867, and 1878. Vincent Van Gogh acquired a number of his pictures.

Medium : 1 print on hosho paper: woodcut, color

Created/Published : Japan : Masadaya, 1871

Creator : Utagawa Hiroshige : 1842? - 1894, artist

Part of the Chadbourne Collection of Japanese prints housed in the Prints & Photographs Division of the Library of Congress

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Product #: cph3g10388