Written & Edited By: Trevor Knapp

I recently received this book as a gift, and I could not help but share this with you all (and try to convince you to get it as well). I’ve seen Utagawa Hiroshige’s work throughout my life unexpectedly, and I’ve seen how his work inspired many a painter and printmaker… You may know of Van Gogh’s Japanese-inspired paintings, which also turned me to Hiroshige.

This book made me see how he is a master of composition, a master craftsman who takes great pride in his homeland. How unconventional his scenes are… placing trees or fish right in front of the scene to block your view. A madman I tell you! And not to mention how engrossing his works are…. they are not even large works! Like regular paper size, what the fuck!

His use of color is also unparalleled. When I realize how many blocks he had to create for each color it boggles my mind. Think about it… he has upwards of like 20-30 colors in each block. That is 20-30 color blocks per image. Makes me look like a lazy bum doing just black on my linocuts.

I am just overjoyed I will get to spend countless hours peering through these pages for years to come… to live in the mountains and cities and about the trees that Hiroshige created.