Description
From Ukiyo-e Project: " A formed castle town situated not too far from Tokyo, Kawagoe is a city where the beauty of historical architecture still remains to this day, and loved by locals today as Koedo, or literally " little Edo," thanks to its historical and cultural connections to Edo (ancient Tokyo).
We are proud to present Vestiges of Edo at Bell Tower, the second of our landscape series Vestiges of Edo that launched in the summer of 2020. Produced in two versions, these landscapes feature Toki no Kane, the iconic Bell Tower of Kawagoe, who bells have continued to resonate through the city for over 400 years.
Both works in this series are aizuri-e, which is a genre of ukiyo-e that only uses different shades of blue (ai = indigo, zuri = print). In Noon, the pure white of the clouds is enhanced by contrasting brisk blue hues, while the slight hint of red in Evening conveys a gentle summer twilight. The fluffy clouds, often found floating in summer skies, are raise in relief to give them a soft yet dynamic finish." (Credits: Ukiyo-e Project)
About the artist
With offices in LA and in Tokyo, UKIYO-E PROJECT is a contemporary ukiyo-e publisher founded by Yuka Mitsui in 2014 to keep ukiyo-e craftsmanship thriving by creating a new market for their traditional skills. As the words “ukiyo” and “e” mean “present” and “image” respectively, ukiyo-e naturally depicted popular trends and cultures of their times. Staying true to this philosophy, UKIYO-E PROJECT immortalizes iconic stars and landscapes of today through traditional ukiyo-e woodblock prints, which continue to receive extensive press and have been acquired by international institutions such as the British Museum, the Museum of Applied Arts in Vienna (MAK), and the Miami University Libraries.