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The Floating World

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

172 works · hang 559 ·

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

Walk this roomRehang this room

Section 1, north wall

  1. Women Beside a Stream Chasing Fireflies, by Chôbunsai Eishi, c. 1796–97
    Women Beside a Stream Chasing FirefliesChôbunsai Eishi, c. 1796–97Courtesy of the Cleveland Museum of Art
  2. The Shika Teahouse, by Utagawa Toyokuni, early 1790s
    The Shika TeahouseUtagawa Toyokuni, early 1790sCourtesy 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 1, south wall

  1. A work made of color woodblock print; oban.
    The actor Osagawa Tsuneyo II as Osan, Ippei’s elder sisterTōshūsai Sharaku, 1794Courtesy of the Art Institute of Chicago
  2. 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
  3. Outfit for the Game of Incense, by Ryūryūkyo Shinsai, 19th century
    Outfit for the Game of IncenseRyūryūkyo Shinsai, 19th centuryCourtesy of The Metropolitan Museum of Art

Section 2, south wall

  1. The Shika Teahouse, by Utagawa Toyokuni, early 1790s
    The Shika TeahouseUtagawa Toyokuni, early 1790sCourtesy of the Cleveland Museum of Art
  2. England (Igirisukoku), by Utagawa Yoshitora, 2nd month, 1865
    England (Igirisukoku)Utagawa Yoshitora, 2nd month, 1865Courtesy of The Metropolitan Museum of Art
  3. A work made of color woodblock print.
    Actor Onoe Matsusuke I as Retired Emperor SutokuKatsukawa Shunkо̄, About 1780Courtesy of the Art Institute of Chicago

Section 2, north wall

  1. A work made of color woodblock print; oban.
    In The Mood for a Walk (Yuho ga shitaso), from the series "Thirty-two Aspects of Women (Fuzoku sanjuniso)"Tsukioka Yoshitoshi, 1888Courtesy of the Art Institute of Chicago
  2. A work made of color woodblock print; surimono.
    A Pine Tree and CamelliasNiwa Tokei, 1840Courtesy of the Art Institute of Chicago
  3. A work made of color woodblock print; oban.
    One Person, Six Expressions (Hitori rokumenso)Kobayashi Kiyochika, 1884Courtesy of the Art Institute of Chicago

Section 3, north wall

  1. Print showing a string of travelers with horses walking along a narrow hillside path beneath an enormous craggy beige mountain at left and an equally massive and craggy deep-blue mountain at right. A brown snow-covered peak appears between these mountains. A mass of cream-colored clouds and a river with rounded ripples fill the middle plane of the composition.
    The Back of Mount Fuji Seen from Minobu River (Minobugawa Urafuji), from the series Thirty-Six Views of Mount Fuji (Fugaku sanjūrokkei)Katsushika Hokusai, 1830-33Courtesy of the Art Institute of Chicago
  2. Perspective Pictures for The Treasure House of Loyalty, by Kitao Masayoshi, c. 1790s
    Perspective Pictures for The Treasure House of LoyaltyKitao Masayoshi, c. 1790sCourtesy of the Cleveland Museum of Art

Section 3, south wall

  1. 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
  2. Young Woman Looking at a Pot of Pinks, by Suzuki Harunobu, c. 1767
    Young Woman Looking at a Pot of PinksSuzuki Harunobu, c. 1767Courtesy of the Cleveland Museum of Art