Artwork
東海道五十三次 赤坂|Akasaka, from the series The Fifty-three Stations of the Tōkaidō Road
東海道五十三次 赤坂|Akasaka, from the series The Fifty-three Stations of the Tōkaidō Road is an ink print by Utagawa Hiroshige. It is held in the collection of the Metropolitan Museum of Art.
About this work
Overview
This woodblock print, Akasaka, is part of the series The Fifty-three Stations of the Tōkaidō Road by Utagawa Hiroshige. Created in ink and color on paper, it depicts a serene night scene.
Subject & Meaning
The print shows a dirt road in the Akasaka station, a stop along the historic Tōkaidō Road connecting Edo to Kyoto. Travelers are seen walking, leading a horse, or carrying bundles, set against a backdrop of dark trees and softly glowing buildings under a bright moon.
Technique & Style
Hiroshige employed bold colors and simple shapes to convey a sense of daily life in a quiet town. The contrast between the dark tree silhouettes and the pale sky adds depth to the scene.
History & Provenance
Utagawa Hiroshige, a prominent Japanese ukiyo-e artist known for his landscape series, created this work. Although the exact date is not specified in the available information, his series The Fifty-three Stations of the Tōkaidō Road is a well-known representation of the route during Japan's Edo period.
Artist & collection
Artist
Utagawa Hiroshige (歌川 広重) or Andō Hiroshige (安藤 広重), born Andō Tokutarō (安藤 徳太郎; 1797 – 12 October 1858), was a Japanese ukiyo-e artist, considered the last great master of that tradition.
東海道五十三次 四日市|Yokkaichi, from the series The Fifty-three Stations of the Tōkaidō Road
東海道五十三次 袋井|Fukuroi, from the series The Fifty-three Stations of the Tōkaidō Road
東海道五十三次 鳴海|Narumi, from the series The Fifty-three Stations of the Tōkaidō Road
東海道五十三次 赤坂|Akasaka
東海道五十三次 吉田|Yoshida, from the series The Fifty-three Stations of the Tōkaidō Road
東海道五十三次 亀山|Kameyama, from the series The Fifty-three Stations of the Tōkaidō Road
The Fifty-Three Stations of the Tokaido: Otsu
東海道五十三次 三島|Mishima, from the series Fifty-three Stations of the Tōkaidō Road (Tōkaidō gojūsan tsugi, Mishima), also known as the Kyōka (Witty Verse) Tōkaidō
東海道五十三次之内 赤阪|Akasaka Station
東海道五十三次 石薬師|Ishiyakushi, from the series The Fifty-three Stations of the Tōkaidō Road
The Fifty-Three Stations of the Tokaido: Hiratsuka
東海道五十三次 桑名|Kuwana, from the series The Fifty-three Stations of the Tōkaidō Road