Japanese Prints

Description

The refinement of Japanese culture is perfectly embodied by prints. Mass-produced during the Edo period (1615-1868) - a period of great cultural splendor - they were intended for a popular audience. They enjoyed a fertile vogue in Europe, especially among French painters who were largely inspired by their style and motifs. The famous ukiyo-e, these "images of the Floating World", a reference to the pleasure and relaxation areas of the great Japanese cities, often took prostitutes and kabuki actors as models. Prints then played a bit the role of today's popular magazines, offering images of beautiful and famous people to a wide audience. However, prints also reproduced the wonders of nature (birds, insects, flowers), the landscapes so typically Japanese - one thinks of Hokusai's famous Wave or his Views of Mount Fuji, or even myths and legends. Daily life (children's games, bathing scenes, fishing, etc.) is not absent either.