Description
This article is from the Manga
Glossary, by Steve Pearl starbuck@cybercomm.net with numerous
contributions by others.
45 Manga: ukiyo-e ^[$BIb@$3(^[(B
"Floating world pictures", depicting life in Edo-period Japan. The
"floating world" was originally a Buddhist term referring to the transient
nature of life, but later came to mean a hedonistic obsession with living
for the present. Thus, ukiyo-e were pictures of life's ephemeral
pleasures.
Moronobu Hishikawa created the first ukiyo-e in the 1670s after
discovering how to make monochrome woodblock prints. (Moronobu is also
known for producing at least 150 illustrated books.) With with further
improvements in publishing technology, such prints became very popular in
the mid-18th century. Harunobu Suzuki created full-colour nishiki-e
^[$B6S3(^[(B and Kitagawa Utamaro created ookubi-e with detailed
backgrounds, often adorned with mica. The standard declined as the market
became saturated, but in the 19th century, Katsushika Hokusai and Ando
Hiroshige reinvented ukiyo-e with their vibrant, dynamic approach. In the
Meiji period, ukiyo-e sometimes appeared in packing material for goods
sent to Europe, and caught the attention of impressionists such as Degas,
Manet and Van Gogh.
Today, ukiyo-e seems to be more appreciated in the West than in Japan.
However, some manga artists, such as Maruo Suehiro, feature a strong
ukiyo-e sensibility in their work. Characteristics of ukiyo-e can also be
found in many mainstream mangas, though this is due more to cultural
diffusion than direct influence.
See also: Jim Breen's Ukiyo-E Gallery
<http://www.rdt.monash.edu.au/~jwb/ukiyoe/ukiyoe.html>
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