Ukiyoe EDO-LIFE
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Ukiyoe EDO-LIFE

Centuries ago, Tokyo was known as Edo. More than a million people enjoyed life in this small but abundant city. They live on in ukiyo-e woodblock prints. Each episode is a deep dive into a single print, and an exploration of the soul of Old Tokyo. We examine works by artists like Hokusai and Hiroshige not just for their aesthetic and historical value, but for the stories they tell of everyday life. That is how the people of Edo themselves enjoyed this mass-produced medium.

10. The Building Blocks of Edo

The Building Blocks of Edo
0.0Mar 22, 2020 · 5 min

Workers at a sawmill use the latest tools and their honed skills to prepare the building blocks of Edo life: long, narrow beams, bamboo stems and leftover wood stacked as high as buildings. "Tatekawa in Honjo" from the series "Thirty-six Views of Mount Fuji" (c.1830) by Katsushika Hokusai