Floor plan

North wing: East AsiaThe Floating World

The Floating World

A work made of color woodblock print; oban.
A work made of color woodblock print; chūban.
A Girl Writing a Letter, by Suzuki Harunobu, 18th century
A work made of color woodblock print; oban.
A work made of color woodblock print; hosoban.
The Shika Teahouse, by Utagawa Toyokuni, early 1790s

The works in this room are listed below.

Works in this room

Japanese woodblock prints of the floating world: actors, courtesans, landscapes and the sea.

Section 1, north wall

  1. A work made of color woodblock print; oban.
    The actor Ichikawa Omezo as the manservant IppeiTōshūsai Sharaku, 1794Courtesy of the Art Institute of Chicago
  2. A work made of color woodblock print; chūban.
    Searching for FirefliesSuzuki Harunobu, 1768Courtesy of the Art Institute of Chicago
  3. A Girl Writing a Letter, by Suzuki Harunobu, 18th century
    A Girl Writing a LetterSuzuki Harunobu, 18th centuryCourtesy of The Metropolitan Museum of Art

Section 1, south wall

  1. A work made of color woodblock print; oban.
    Osumi, a Tayu of the Tsuchiya in the Shinmachi Quarter in OsakaEishosai Choki, c. 1796/97Courtesy of the Art Institute of Chicago
  2. A work made of color woodblock print; hosoban.
    Actor Nakamura Nakazô I as Osada no Tarô in The Genji Clan Now at Its Zenith (Ima o sakari suehiro Genji)Katsukawa Shunshō, About 1768Courtesy of the Art Institute of Chicago
  3. The Shika Teahouse, by Utagawa Toyokuni, early 1790s
    The Shika TeahouseUtagawa Toyokuni, early 1790sCourtesy of the Cleveland Museum of Art

Section 2, south wall

  1. A work made of color woodblock print; ōban.
    Catching FirefliesEishosai Choki, c.1790sCourtesy of the Art Institute of Chicago
  2. Boating Party on the Sumida River, by Torii Kiyonaga, 1789
    Boating Party on the Sumida RiverTorii Kiyonaga, 1789Courtesy of the Cleveland Museum of Art
  3. Xu You and Chao Fu, by Okumura Masanobu, 18th century
    Xu You and Chao FuOkumura Masanobu, 18th centuryCourtesy of The Metropolitan Museum of Art

Section 2, north wall

  1. Books and Cards, by Reisai, 18th–19th century
    Books and CardsReisai, 18th–19th centuryCourtesy of The Metropolitan Museum of Art
  2. A work made of color woodblock print; vertical oban diptych.
    Image of a Japanese Woman (Fujo Yamato sugata)Utagawa Kunisada I (Toyokuni III), c. 1830/35Courtesy of the Art Institute of Chicago
  3. Net Fishing at Night on the Sumida River, by Kitagawa Utamaro, c. 1800
    Net Fishing at Night on the Sumida RiverKitagawa Utamaro, c. 1800Courtesy of the Cleveland Museum of Art

Section 3, north wall

  1. A work made of color woodblock print; chuban.
    Delaying the announcement of dawnSuzuki Harunobu, c. 1767/68Courtesy of the Art Institute of Chicago
  2. Foreign Business Establishment in Yokohama (Yokohama ijin shōkan shashin no zu), by Utagawa (Gountei) Sadahide, 1861
    Foreign Business Establishment in Yokohama (Yokohama ijin shōkan shashin no zu)Utagawa (Gountei) Sadahide, 1861Courtesy of The Metropolitan Museum of Art

Section 3, south wall

  1. Children Playing in the Snow under Plum Trees in Bloom (Secchū baisō gunji yūgi zu), by Yōshū (Hashimoto) Chikanobu, November 1887
    Children Playing in the Snow under Plum Trees in Bloom (Secchū baisō gunji yūgi zu)Yōshū (Hashimoto) Chikanobu, November 1887Courtesy of The Metropolitan Museum of Art
  2. A work made of color woodblock print; oban.
    Three Beauties of Our Time (Tosei san bijin)Chokosai Eisho, n.d.Courtesy of the Art Institute of Chicago