Artwork
近江八景之内 比良暮雪|Evening Snow on Mount Hira
近江八景之内 比良暮雪|Evening Snow on Mount Hira is an ink print by the Romanticist artist Utagawa Hiroshige. It dates from 1832 and is held in the collection of the Metropolitan Museum of Art.
About this work
Overview
Created circa 1832 by Utagawa Hiroshige, this woodblock print depicts Mount Hira cloaked in evening snow. Executed with ink and color on paper, the image forms part of Hiroshige’s series on the traditional Eight Views of Ōmi, a set of scenic motifs drawn from Chinese precedent. The work is presently held by the Metropolitan Museum of Art.
Subject & Meaning
The composition presents a tranquil village set between a dark, jagged mountain and a placid water surface. Snow lightly blankets the rooftops and surrounding hills, while the sky is rendered in a deep blue‑gray, evoking the hush of a winter twilight. The scene emphasizes the quietude of rural life, contrasting with Hiroshige’s more common urban subjects.
Technique & Style
Hiroshige employs fine, intersecting lines to model the mountain’s shadows, creating a textured, almost tactile surface. Cross‑hatching builds depth on the rugged peaks, allowing the white of the snow to stand out against the darker tones of the village below. The restrained palette of ink and muted colors reinforces the atmospheric mood typical of his landscape prints.
History & Provenance
The print belongs to Hiroshige’s Eight Views of Ōmi series, a departure from his celebrated urban series such as The Fifty‑three Stations of the Tōkaidō and One Hundred Famous Views of Edo. After circulating in the mid‑Edo market, the piece entered the collection of the Metropolitan Museum of Art, where it remains on view as an example of early 19th‑century Japanese printmaking.
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.
