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The Floating World

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

172 works · hang 7927 ·

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

Walk this roomRehang this room

Section 1, north wall

  1. Leftmost Print from Pleasure Boats on the Sumida River beneath Shin-Ōhashi Bridge, by Chôbunsai Eishi, c. 1792
    Leftmost Print from Pleasure Boats on the Sumida River beneath Shin-Ōhashi BridgeChôbunsai Eishi, c. 1792Courtesy of the Cleveland Museum of Art
  2. A work made of color woodblock print.
    Procession of Russian Marching Band, from the Album of seven prints of Russian Army and Warship (Roshia seigi shashin kan), 1853Keiga, 1853Courtesy of the Art Institute of Chicago

Section 1, south wall

  1. A work made of color woodblock print; ōban.
    Amida Falls in the Far Reaches of the Kisokaido (Kisoji no oku Amidagataki), from the series "A Tour of Waterfalls in Various Provinces (Shokoku taki meguri)"Katsushika Hokusai, About 1833Courtesy 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. Anekawa Daisuke as Ayame-no-mae, by Torii Kiyomitsu, 1760
    Anekawa Daisuke as Ayame-no-maeTorii Kiyomitsu, 1760Courtesy of the Cleveland Museum of Art

Section 2, south wall

  1. Women Grating Radish for Sashimi, by Kitagawa Utamaro, ca. 1798–99
    Women Grating Radish for SashimiKitagawa Utamaro, ca. 1798–99Courtesy of The Metropolitan Museum of Art
  2. “Hanamurasaki of the Tamaya,” from the series Seven Komachi of the Pleasure Quarters (Seirō Nana Komachi), by Kitagawa Utamaro, ca. 1790
    “Hanamurasaki of the Tamaya,” from the series Seven Komachi of the Pleasure Quarters (Seirō Nana Komachi)Kitagawa Utamaro, ca. 1790Courtesy of The Metropolitan Museum of Art
  3. Matsumoto Koshiro IV as the Fish Peddler Gorobei, by Tōshūsai Sharaku, Probably late 1880s or early 1890s
    Matsumoto Koshiro IV as the Fish Peddler GorobeiTōshūsai Sharaku, Probably late 1880s or early 1890sCourtesy of The Metropolitan Museum of Art

Section 2, north wall

  1. A work made of color woodblock print; oban.
    Fireworks at Ryōgoku (Ryōgoku hanabi), from the series One Hundred Famous Views of Edo (Meisho Edo hyakkei)Utagawa Hiroshige, 1858Courtesy of the Art Institute of Chicago
  2. 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
  3. Shimosuwa, from Sixty-Nine Stations of the Kisokaidō, by Utagawa Hiroshige, 1835–38
    Shimosuwa, from Sixty-Nine Stations of the KisokaidōUtagawa Hiroshige, 1835–38Courtesy of the Cleveland Museum of Art

Section 3, north wall

  1. A color woodblock print of a large crashing wave, looms over two narrow boats full of people. Mt Fuji in the background. There is a faint peach colored sky.
    Under the Wave off Kanagawa (Kanagawa oki nami ura), also known as The Great Wave, from the series "Thirty-Six Views of Mount Fuji (Fugaku sanjurokkei)"Katsushika Hokusai, 1830/33Courtesy of the Art Institute of Chicago
  2. A work made of color woodblock print; shikishiban surimono.
    Dawn over Mout Fuji and Susaki, from the series "Five Views of Mount Fuji (Fuji goban no uchi)"Utagawa Kuniyoshi, c. 1827/29Courtesy of the Art Institute of Chicago
  3. 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. Plate from the Erotic Book Mounds of Dyed Colors: A Pattern Book for the Boudoir (Someiro no yama neya no hinagata), First Month, by Okumura Masanobu, ca. 1736–44
    Plate from the Erotic Book Mounds of Dyed Colors: A Pattern Book for the Boudoir (Someiro no yama neya no hinagata), First MonthOkumura Masanobu, ca. 1736–44Courtesy of The Metropolitan Museum of Art
  2. A work made of color woodblock print; hosoban.
    Actor Ichikawa Monnosuke II in an Unidentified RoleKatsukawa Shunkо̄, About 1785Courtesy of the Art Institute of Chicago