Hanga
Umesawa, from the series Scenes of Famous Places along the Tôkaidô Road (Tôkaidô meisho fûkei), also known as the Processional Tôkaidô (Gyôretsu Tôkaidô), here called Tôkaidô meisho no uchi by Kawanabe Kyosai — Japanese Woodblock print

Umesawa, from the series Scenes of Famous Places along the Tôkaidô Road (Tôkaidô meisho fûkei), also known as the Processional Tôkaidô (Gyôretsu Tôkaidô), here called Tôkaidô meisho no uchi

by Kawanabe Kyosai

Medium:
Woodblock print
Image courtesy of
Museum of Fine Arts Boston

Description

This meisho-e depicts Umesawa, a coastal waypoint along the Tōkaidō highway, as part of Kyosai's series variously titled Tōkaidō meisho fūkei and Gyōretsu Tōkaidō — the latter subtitle indicating that feudal processions, likely daimyo retinues traveling under sankin-kōtai obligation, animate the composition. Umesawa's landscape character, with pine-lined shores near the Sagami coast, lends itself to the sweeping horizontal registers typical of Tōkaidō imagery. Kyosai would have layered atmospheric bokashi gradations across sky and water, contrasting open coastal views with the dense column of marching attendants. This impression is one of several known variants in the series; differences in ink density and color registration distinguish it from related impressions. The series situates Kyosai within the meisho-e tradition while reflecting Bakumatsu-era nostalgia for the regulated procession culture that collapsed with the Meiji Restoration.

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Frequently Asked Questions

Umesawa, from the series Scenes of Famous Places along the Tôkaidô Road (Tôkaidô meisho fûkei), also known as the Processional Tôkaidô (Gyôretsu Tôkaidô), here called Tôkaidô meisho no uchi was created by Kawanabe Kyosai (河鍋暁斎).

Yes — Umesawa, from the series Scenes of Famous Places along the Tôkaidô Road (Tôkaidô meisho fûkei), also known as the Processional Tôkaidô (Gyôretsu Tôkaidô), here called Tôkaidô meisho no uchi is part of the Scenes of Famous Places along the Tôkaidô Road series by Kawanabe Kyosai.

Umesawa, from the series Scenes of Famous Places along the Tôkaidô Road (Tôkaidô meisho fûkei), also known as the Processional Tôkaidô (Gyôretsu Tôkaidô), here called Tôkaidô meisho no uchi depicts transportation, tōkaidō, and travel scenes.