Hiroshige 広重: Fudo Falls, Oji 王子 不動之滝 (SOLD)

Artist: Utagawa Hiroshige 歌川広重 (1797-1858)
Title: Fudo Falls, Oji 王子 不動之滝

Series: One Hundred Famous Views of Edo: Meisho Edo Hyakkei 名所江戸百景

Date: 1856

Falling dramatically and perfectly straight from top to bottom, the Fudo Falls are given volume and weight using careful bokashi shading. We join the three visitors who face the falls in being transfixed by its beauty. The scenic and secluded Fudo Falls draws visitors for its restorative contemplation and healing waters. The falls were approached through the grounds of the Shojuin Temple, a Buddhist temple. Fudo (immovable) is a Buddhist deity depicted wreathed in flames and holding a sword. Henry Smith notes that the stylized depiction of the waterfall may also be an allusion to Fudo’s mighty sword of wisdom. Garlanding the top we see shimenawa rope, used to mark a sacred Shinto space. We see a man wading gingerly into the supposedly curative waters, and an older woman serving tea to another visitor who looks like he may have already gone for a dip. The woman’s simple tea-serving setup is shown in the foreground, all details carefully rendered. Two women holding folded parasols approach to take in the scenic beauty. An exceptionally nice example, with huge, clean margins and woodgrain evident in the grey block at bottom, indicating an early impression.

Condition: Excellent impression, color and condition. With exceptionally large, clean margins. As mint as a work of this age can be.

Dimensions: 37 x 25 cm  Publisher: Uoya Eikichi
Literature: Henry Smith II: “Hiroshige’s One Hundred Famous Views of Edo”, plate 49. See the museum collections of the British Museum, Minneapolis Institute of Art, Chazen, Fine Arts Museums of San Francisco , Honolulu Museum of Art. 

Signature: Hiroshige ga

SKU: HIR558