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What is Sosaku Hanga? A Brief Introduction to Creative Prints

Celebrating originality and authorship, the sosaku hanga, or “creative print,” movement embraced the idea of transformation.

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Yoshitoshi: One Hundred Views of the Moon Exhibition Catalog

Explore our 108-page paperback Yoshitoshi exhibition poster and catalogue, complete with an introductory essay and illustrations.

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Extending the Narrative: Mike Magers and Ukiyo-e

From dives off the coast near Toba to intimate views within the ateliers of artisans, Michael Magers imbues each of his photographs with a story.

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A Closer Look: Yorimasa and the Nue

From vengeful spirits to mischievous monsters, ukiyo-e teem with supernatural beings and spine-chilling tales. With Halloween upon us, we turn to one such tale–the story of Yorimasa and the nue–as told by two masters of the fearsome and fantastic, Kuniyoshi and Yoshitoshi. The nue is a chimeral monster with the head of a monkey, the body of a badger (or tanuki), the legs of a tiger, and a hissing snake as a tail, depending on the source.

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The Tale of the 47 Ronin

The celebrated tale of the 47 loyal retainers stems from the historical event known as the Ako incident (1701-1704). Continuously illustrated, adapted, parodied, and performed since its occurrence at turn of the 18th century, this tale of loyalty provided irresistible inspiration for ukiyo-e artists.

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A Closer Look: Hokusai's Great Wave

No single work of Japanese art is better known than Hokusai's Under the Wave off Kanagawa, or, as it is widely known, the Great Wave.Published as part of the series Thirty-Six Views of Mount Fuji (c.1830-1832), today this design has become embedded in popular culture, appearing everywhere from phone cases and emojis, to murals and political cartoons.

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How to Make a Woodblock Print

The printing process of can be hard to imagine in abstract. Let's turn to a work by Harunobu (1725-1770), father of nishiki-e, to explore the printing the printing process a block at time.

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A Closer Look: Jade Rabbit and Sun Wukong

Songoku, the Monkey King, or Sun Wukong in Chinese, is the hero of the 16th century Chinese novel The Journey to the West. Yoshitoshi presents this legendary monkey in this design from One Hundred Views of the Moon.

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The Tale of the Nine-Tailed Fox

Popular characters in Japanese myths and folklore, foxes, or kitsune, are considered intelligent, magical and associated with the Shinto spirit Inari. The enduring tale of Tamamo-no-Mae and the Emperor Konoe serves as a cautionary tale about these mystical animals.

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Shin Hanga & Hasui Kawase

In Shin Hanga & Hasui Kawase, 2018 summer intern Mei Bock explores the Shin Hanga, or "new print," movement of the twentieth century as well as one of it's movement's most important artists, Hasui Kawase.

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The Rise and Resurgence of Meisho-e

From brilliant crimson leaves of the fall to the snow-tipped peak of Mount Fuji, the natural beauty of Japan enchants its visitors. During the 19th century, ukiyo-e artists captured this beauty in spirit and form through meisho-e. By the 20th century, the genre found a distinctly modern voice and new masters through the Shin Hanga movement.

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The Fierce and Fantastic World of Kuniyoshi

Kuniyoshi embraced a phantasmagoria of the fierce, frightening, and the fantastic. In the exhibition Kuniyoshi: The Masterpieces, Ronin Gallery explores the ravenous imagination and unmatched skill of Kuniyoshi through masterpiece designs.

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Wrestling the Demon: Noriko and Ushio Shinohara

Wrestling the Demon: Noriko and Ushio Shinohara explores decades of printmaking within two storied careers—Noriko and Ushio Shinohara.

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Meet the Artist: Ushio Shinohara

In the 1960s, Ushio established himself as the enfant terrible of the Japanese art scene, where he gained particular notoriety for his boxing paintings. Ushio has been featured in many solo and group exhibitions worldwide, including the National Museum of Modern Art Tokyo, National Museum of Modern Art Kyoto, Museum of Modern Art New York, and the Japan Society New York, to name just a few.

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Meet the Artist: Noriko Shinohara

Noriko Shinohara's work brings together boldness of color, line, and persistent humor. Instilling her work with irony and poignancy, her contemporary scenes draw inspiration from a variety of art styles across time and culture. Born in Toyama Prefecture, Japan in 1953, Noriko Shinohara moved to New York City in 1972 to study at the Art Students League.

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What Makes a Print Rare?

If woodblock prints were produced in multiple, how can a print be rare? From natural disasters to the damage of use, the woodblock prints that exist today have beat the odds. With this in mind, all existing woodblock prints are rare. Yet, there are certain combinations of artist, printing technique, design, and condition that set certain impressions apart from the rest. We look to the collection for several examples of true rarity.

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Contemporary Talents of Japan 2017

From unique woodblock prints to vivacious ink paintings, the second annual Contemporary Talents of Japan exhibition explores Japan's diverse artistic vanguard. Featuring Katsutoshi Yuasa, the 2017 winner of the Ronin|Globus Artist-in-Residence Program, this exhibition considers an enduring aesthetic in the contemporary imagination.

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Hiroshige: 53 Stations of the Upright Tokaido

Winding along the eastern coast of Japan, the Tokaido was the most traveled road of the Edo period. Cutting across rivers and mountains, this artery pulsed with folklore, politics, artistic inspiration, and insatiable zeal for adventure.

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Reflecting the Spirit: Shiko Munakata (1903-1975)

Munakata and the Disciples of Buddha invites you to experience the woodblock prints of Shiko Munakata (1903–1975) and to discover the Buddhist roots of Japanese woodblock printing. Culminating in his iconic series Ten Great Disciples of the Buddha, this exhibition explores the vital interplay of artistic tradition and religious practice behind Munakata’s groundbreaking work.

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What is Kawaii?

While often translated to "cute," in English, this translation of kawaii is a misnomer. So what exactly is kawaii? Where did this idea originate? Kawaii is an influential and subversive culture in dialogue with centuries of Japanese popular culture. For artist Sebastian Masuda, the kawaii spirit is akin to that of the punk or hippie movement, a rebellion against the norms and standards of mainstream culture.

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True Colors: Sebastian Masuda

In his second New York exhibition, Sebastian Masuda invites his viewer to trade the grayscale of daily life for a movingly vibrant spectrum of color. Through dynamic multimedia collages, this truly immersive exhibition extols Masuda's message of "colorful rebellion" against the gray, dark, and disharmony of the world.

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Then and Now: Hiroshige's Landscapes

As a master of the landscape print, Hiroshige captures Edo-period Japan through series such as One Hundred Famous Views of Edo and Famous Views of the 60-Odd Provinces. How have these famous places fared as destinations in the 21st century? Looking to four prints from the exhibition Hiroshige's Landscapes, let's check in.

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Momijigari Season

As summer days cool and the sweet smell of turning leaves fills the air, autumn is undoubtedly upon us. While spring in Japan brings the delicate pink of the cherry blossoms, autumn bursts into a kaleidoscope of brilliant reds, oranges, and yellows. Such stunning natural beauty is celebrated with momijigari.

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Considering Condition: When Can a Negative Become a Positive?

How many of the traits that traditionally depreciate a print's value actually preserved the work's overall value?

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