Hiroshige II | Nakazu Mitsumata, 36 Views of the Eastern Capital
二代目歌川広重 Utagawa Hiroshige II (active 1826–1869)
東都三十六景 中洲三ッ俣
Nakazu Mitsumata, from the series Thirty-six Views of the Eastern Capital
1862
木版画 | 竖绘大判 | 24.5cm x 36.3cm
Woodblock-print | Oban tate-e | 24.5cm x 36.3cm
早期的版次；轻微褪色
Early impression; slight fading
$2,200
A worker chars and seals the bottom of a wooden boat on the shore of the Sumida River. This is one of the best designs from Hiroshige II’s “36 Views of the Capital,” which he produced from 1861 to 1862. Even though this was just a few years after Hiroshige’s death and the publication of the landmark “100 Famous Views of Edo,” the changes that were sweeping Japan were more and more evident every day. Here we see a way of life that was fast fading. There are no black ships in this print, but there might as well have been, because the presence of these ominous Western vessels was by now commonplace.
As in his master’s depiction of riverside kilns, Hiroshige II uses a billowing, diagonal smoke plume, wonderfully rendered, to chop the composition in two. The smoke delineates the fork in the river for which the print is named. On one side we see the graceful span of the Ryogoku Bridge crossing the Sumida, and on the other the Mannon Bridge crossing its canal tributary. Small freighters ride at anchor while one with sails unfurled heads down to Edo Bay. The crouching workmen with their fires were a favorite of Ukiyoe artists – Kuniyoshi also depicted them.
《东都三十六景》，是二代歌川广重于1861至1862年创作的竖版名所绘系列，全套连同一张目录在内共计37幅。在本系列中，二代广重延续着先师清新明快的作画风格，并增添了些许彰显个人艺术特质的小巧思，因此不乏杰出之作。
中洲，顾名思义，指的其实就是隅田川西岸的一处沙洲，因其位于河水分流处，故而又被百姓们称作“三俣”。芦荡青青，碧波层层，一名船夫在沙洲的空地上用几根木桩架起了小船，并在其身旁生起了篝火。伴随着耳畔哔啵的燃烧声，画面中央升腾起了一股灰白色的浓烟，厚重扎实，有着仿佛粗棉布的质感。从已经熏得乌黑的船底可以得知，船夫正是用烟火去除那些附着在船底有碍航行、有损船体的水生物。此刻的他手捏烟管，侧头望向远方，静静地等待着小船的蜕变。顺着他的视线看去，画面右上角，两艘屋形船穿行水中；而在其左侧的永代桥旁，可见几面白帆与一排竖起桅杆的船只停泊在港湾。古今人事代谢，即在船来船往之间。
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Utagawa Hiroshige II (active 1826-1869)
Born Chinpei Suzuki in 1826, Hiroshige II was given the name of Shigenobu after becoming one of Hiroshige’s very few students. In his career he hewed so closely to the master’s style, focusing on landscapes and the romantic interactions between human beings and the natural world, that it’s hard to determine whether he had a style of his own. He had a firm grasp of composition and color, yes, but the quality of his lines didn’t always match that of his teacher. (On occasion his people look sadly like stick figures.)
He took the name Hiroshige II after marrying Hiroshige’s 16-year-old daughter, Otatsu. He even completed his father-in-law’s final series – at least one, and possibly two, prints in “100 Famous Views of Edo” are attributed to Hiroshige II, done presumably after Hiroshige’s death in 1858.
But Hiroshige II produced some memorable works of his own, especially in the magnificent, “100 Famous Views of the Provinces” which he designed between 1859 and 1862. This includes “Kintai Bridge at Iwakuni in Suo Province,” which shows this legendary bridge of stone spans slashing across the paper on a left-to-right downward diagonal, a mirror of Hiroshige’s famed “Squall at Ohashi.”
During the time this series was produced, woodblock printing technology reached its zenith, and the printing quality of some of his prints is extraordinary. The “Deluxe” editions of these include wonderfully elaborate cartouches.
In the 1860s Hiroshige II was extremely prolific, including contributing to the “Processional Tokaido” with practically every other major Ukiyo-e artist of the day. Other series of varying quality focused on Edo and its environs. He was, like his teacher, especially adept at rain and snow scenes – some of his rain views, such as in “Eight Views of the Sumida River” in 1861, give a sense of a sudden downpour that is perhaps even more palpable than those of Hiroshige’s.
As this was just at the time of the “opening” of Japan, many of these prints are notable for the glimpses of western culture they provide, including ominous “Black Ships” riding at anchor, and Western men with giant noses, bushy eyebrows and ridiculous mustaches and beards, which the Japanese of the time must have found fascinating – amusing? – indeed.
Alas, things didn’t work out too well for our friend Hiroshige II. He and Otatsu divorced and he fell into alcoholism. He was last known to earn a meagre sum by decorating lanterns, kites and tea chests.
As for Otatsu, well, she married another painter and student of her late father’s named Goto Torakichi, who became Hiroshige III.
One woman, two Hiroshiges. Honestly, I’d like to know more about her – she sounds like a real number.