Hiroshige transformed Japanese landscape printing through his mastery of bokashi (gradated wash) technique and sensitivity to weather, season, and light. His atmospheric landscapes directly influenced Impressionist painters in Europe after Japanese prints reached the West in the 1860s.
This [oban](/glossary/oban) print from the "Life of Yoshitsune" series depicts the young warrior Ushiwakamaru — the future Minamoto no Yoshitsune — deep in the cedar forest of Mount Kurama north of Kyoto, receiving secret instruction in swordsmanship from a tengu (a winged mountain spirit). The moonlit forest setting and the supernatural teacher give the scene its romantic, legendary quality. Hiroshige produced this figure-history series alongside his landscape work in the early 1830s.
Wakasa Kugushiko
1920
Color woodblock print; oban
Woodblock print
1934
Color woodblock print; oban
n.d.
Woodblock print; ishizuri-e, section of harimaze sheet
Curated cross-cuts that include this print.
No. 2: Ushiwakamaru Learns Swordsplay from the Tengu at Sojogatani on Mount Kurama (Nikai, Kuramayama Sojogatani ni oite Ushiwakamaru ijin yori kenpo o manabu), from the series "The Life of Yoshitsune (Yoshitsune ichidai zue)" was created by Utagawa Hiroshige (歌川広重) in c. 1832/34.
Yes — No. 2: Ushiwakamaru Learns Swordsplay from the Tengu at Sojogatani on Mount Kurama (Nikai, Kuramayama Sojogatani ni oite Ushiwakamaru ijin yori kenpo o manabu), from the series "The Life of Yoshitsune (Yoshitsune ichidai zue)" is part of the The Life of Yoshitsune (Yoshitsune ichidaiki no uchi) series by Utagawa Hiroshige.
No. 2: Ushiwakamaru Learns Swordsplay from the Tengu at Sojogatani on Mount Kurama (Nikai, Kuramayama Sojogatani ni oite Ushiwakamaru ijin yori kenpo o manabu), from the series "The Life of Yoshitsune (Yoshitsune ichidai zue)" depicts landscapes, mythology, and warriors.
