Summer Night at Asakusa Kuramae
- Date:
- 1881
- Medium:
- Woodblock print (nishiki-e), ink and color on paper
- Format:
- Oban
- Dimensions:
- 23.2 × 34.6 cm
- Source:
- Minneapolis Institute of Art
Description
The Asakusa Kuramae district — a commercial area along the Sumida's western bank north of the great temple complex — is depicted on a summer night in this 1881 nishiki-e. Kuramae, named for the government rice warehouses that lined its riverfront, had a lively summer evening culture of riverside stalls and entertainment, and Kiyochika's composition captures the warm, lantern-lit character of a district that mixed commerce and leisure along the waterway. The summer heat of the composition — implied by the open storefronts and casual figures — contrasts with his many wintry Tokyo subjects.
More Prints by Kobayashi Kiyochika
More Urban Scenes Prints
A Hundred Shades of Ink of Edo: Kiyonaga's Pipe (Edo zumi hyaku shoku: Kiyonaga no kiseru)
Woodblock print
View of Kabuki Theater from Matsuya (Ginza Matsuya yori Kabukiza), no. 3 from the series "Pictures of Ginza, First Series (Gashu Ginza dai isshu)"
1928
Color lithograph
Distant View of Mitsukoshi Movie Theater in Shinjuku from the Sixth Floor of Hoteiya (Hoteiya rokkai kara Shinjuku Mitsukoshi Musashi no kan enbo zu), no. 1 from the series "Scenery of Shinjuku (Gashu Shinjuku fukei)"
1930
Color lithograph
Spring Dusk at the Tōshō Shrine in Ueno
1948
Woodblock print, ink and color on paper
Featured in Collections
Curated cross-cuts that include this print.
Frequently Asked Questions
Summer Night at Asakusa Kuramae was created by Kobayashi Kiyochika (小林清親) in 1881.
Summer Night at Asakusa Kuramae depicts urban scenes, temples & shrines, and night scenes, set at Asakusa.
Summer Night at Asakusa Kuramae measures 23.2 × 34.6 cm (Oban format).