The peak of creativity of the Japanese masters was composed of 118 prints series "Meishō Edo hyakkey" - "One hundred well-known species of Edo". In the small town buildings clung tightly to each other, interspersed with extensive rice fields, parks and gardens. Thus, the landscape was very varied and picturesque. All these wonders of the ancient capital, and we are seeing in the Hiroshige prints. He invites the audience to perform with him on a walk around.
The village of Minova, Kanasugi and Mikavasima (5 /1857) - an engraving from the series "One Hundred of Edo". The title is the name of three villages, located one after the other from south to north. Being in Minova, the viewer considers the territory through Mikavasima Kanusigi. Territory Mikavasima depicted in the background. Throughout the Edo period, it remained rural. Here grew rice and various vegetables, but it is particularly famous for radishes. A very important component of traditional Japanese cuisine.
In the upper right corner inside the red rectangle of the title series. On the other cartouche (an ornament, which is placed the inscription) the description of the place depicted, a short, but capacious. In the lower left corner of the artist's signature. These cartouches accentuate the viewer's attention on the color and compositional structure of paintings. The use of color accents, not directly related to the image itself, enhances the expressiveness of a decorative prints, as well as the entire series "One Hundred of Edo".
When you create a diagonal arrangement comes to a new master for the Japanese art of understanding the problem landscape. It does not imply an exact copy of the form area. To Hiroshige's important to create an image of nature, which is refracted through the prism of human experience and at the same time has an impact on the souls of men, calling them a particular mood. It depends on the mood of the image of the capital, in which the viewer.
In the foreground, "Villages Minot, Kanasugi and Mikavasima" flying crane, and through it is a landscape. Tanta (red head) - Japanese crane-bird, a rare bird these days, in the Red Book. Crane in Japan since ancient times was considered a symbol of longevity. The artist pays special attention to the combination of bright colors, combining more intensely colored foreground plane of the colorful and delicate shades distant species. The audience seemed to include in the landscape, the lower edge is the point from which he examines what is happening. This method is characteristic of ukiyo-e 18 th century. Natural landscape paintings marked not only the reliability and topographic precision, but made poetry the artist executed the beauty and significance. This is a lyrical portrait of Edo, presented by the master of his contemporaries and subsequent generations. In the works of Hiroshige any landscape theme, reflected in the perception of man - the path to understanding the essence of nature, its unique soul.
Van Gogh wrote about the talent of Hiroshige: "The Japanese paints quickly, like lightning, his nerves thin, and the perception easier. It should be noted that elements of the image prints are used in the Russian and West European applied arts, especially in porcelain.
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