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The Floating World

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

172 works · hang 9472 ·

The rooms are imagined; every work on their walls is real.

Walk this roomRehang this room

Section 1, north wall

  1. A work made of hand-colored woodblock print; toku-oban, urushi-e.
    Courtesan Reading a LetterIshikawa Toyonobu, c. 1745Courtesy of the Art Institute of Chicago
  2. Foreign Family with Wife Making Clothes (Gaikokujin ifuku shitate no zu), by Utagawa Yoshikazu, 1860
    Foreign Family with Wife Making Clothes (Gaikokujin ifuku shitate no zu)Utagawa Yoshikazu, 1860Courtesy of The Metropolitan Museum of Art
  3. A work made of woodblock print in black ink and watercolor on cream japanese paper.
    The Priest Kobo Daishi at the Tama River in Kii Province from the series The Six Tama RiversTorii Kiyomasu, c. 1725-1735Courtesy of the Art Institute of Chicago

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. Fuji from Ushibori, Province of Hitachi, by Katsushika Hokusai, 1760–1849
    Fuji from Ushibori, Province of HitachiKatsushika Hokusai, 1760–1849Courtesy of the Cleveland Museum of Art
  3. Paper Doll Clothing, 1897–98
    Paper Doll ClothingUnrecorded Japanese maker, 1897–98Courtesy of The Metropolitan Museum of Art

Section 2, south wall

  1. Kametani Jujiro as the Shirabyoshi Dancer Yuya, by Torii Kiyomitsu, c. early 1760s
    Kametani Jujiro as the Shirabyoshi Dancer YuyaTorii Kiyomitsu, c. early 1760sCourtesy of the Cleveland Museum of Art
  2. Illustration of a Balloon Ascending (Fūsen shōyō no zu), by Utagawa Yoshitora, November, 1872
    Illustration of a Balloon Ascending (Fūsen shōyō no zu)Utagawa Yoshitora, November, 1872Courtesy of The Metropolitan Museum of Art
  3. A work made of color woodblock print, oban triptych.
    Sei Shonagon, from the series Ancient Patterns (Kodai moyo)Kobayashi Kiyochika, Meiji period (1896–1912), 1896Courtesy of the Art Institute of Chicago

Section 2, north wall

  1. Ichikawa Monnosuke II as Soga no Gorō, by Katsukawa Shunkō, 1779
    Ichikawa Monnosuke II as Soga no GorōKatsukawa Shunkō, 1779Courtesy of the Cleveland Museum of Art
  2. 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
  3. Grasshopper and Iris, by Katsushika Hokusai, late 1820s
    Grasshopper and IrisKatsushika Hokusai, late 1820sCourtesy of The Metropolitan Museum of Art

Section 3, north wall

  1. A work made of woodblock print, ink and colors on paper.
    Kanagawa in Musashi Province: Distant View of Yokohama (Yokohama enbo), from the series Calligraphy and Pictures for the Fifty-three Stations of the Tokaido (Shoga gojusan eki)Utagawa Yoshimori, 1982Courtesy of the Art Institute of Chicago
  2. Passengers in a Ferry Boat on the Sumida River, by Torii Kiyonaga, 1784
    Passengers in a Ferry Boat on the Sumida RiverTorii Kiyonaga, 1784Courtesy of the Cleveland Museum of Art

Section 3, south wall

  1. A Picture by Hishikawa Moronobu: Woman with a Set of Poem Cards, by Totoya Hokkei, mid 1820s
    A Picture by Hishikawa Moronobu: Woman with a Set of Poem CardsTotoya Hokkei, mid 1820sCourtesy of the Cleveland Museum of Art
  2. A work made of color woodblock print; surimono.
    Three Types of ChrysanthemumsKitao Shigemasa, c. 1790Courtesy of the Art Institute of Chicago