{"product_id":"hiroshige-eisen-the-sixty-nine-stations-along-the-kisokaido-40th-ed-1","title":"Hiroshige \u0026 Eisen. The Sixty-Nine Stations along the Kisokaido. 45th Ed.","description":"The Kisokaido route through Japan was ordained in the early 1600s by the country's then-ruler Tokugawa Ieyasu, who decreed that staging posts be installed along the length of the \u003cb\u003earduous passage between Edo (present-day Tokyo) and Kyoto\u003c\/b\u003e. Inns, shops, and restaurants were established to provide sustenance and lodging to weary travelers. In 1835, renowned woodblock print artist \u003cb\u003eKeisai Eisen\u003c\/b\u003e was commissioned to create a series of works to chart the Kisokaido journey. After producing 24 prints, Eisen was replaced by \u003cb\u003eUtagawa Hiroshige\u003c\/b\u003e, who completed the series of 70 prints in 1838.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eBoth \u003cb\u003eEisen and Hiroshige were master print practitioners\u003c\/b\u003e. In The Sixty-Nine Stations along the Kisokaido, we find the artists' distinct styles as much as their shared expertise. From the busy starting post of Nihonbashi to the castle town of Iwamurata, Eisen opts for a more muted palette but excels in figuration, particularly of \u003cb\u003eglamorous women\u003c\/b\u003e, and relishes \u003cb\u003esnapshots of activity along the route\u003c\/b\u003e, from shoeing a horse to winnowing rice. Hiroshige demonstrates his mastery of landscape with \u003cb\u003egrandiose and evocative scenes\u003c\/b\u003e, whether it's the \u003cb\u003epeaceful banks of the Ota River, the forbidding Wada Pass\u003c\/b\u003e, or a moonlit ascent between Yawata and Mochizuki.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eTaken as a whole, The Sixty-Nine Stations collection represents not only a masterpiece of woodblock practice, including \u003cb\u003ebold compositions\u003c\/b\u003e and an \u003cb\u003eexperimental use of color\u003c\/b\u003e, but also \u003cb\u003ea\u003c\/b\u003e \u003cb\u003echarming tapestry of 19th-century Japan, long before the specter of industrialization\u003c\/b\u003e. This TASCHEN volume is sourced from \u003cb\u003eone of the finest surviving first editions\u003c\/b\u003e and revives the series in our compact anniversary edition.","brand":"TASCHEN","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":42523639185444,"sku":"9783836594875","price":54.99,"currency_code":"AUD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0725\/9734\/0196\/files\/9783836594875.jpg?v=1780170302","url":"https:\/\/thamesandhudson.com.au\/products\/hiroshige-eisen-the-sixty-nine-stations-along-the-kisokaido-40th-ed-1","provider":"Thames \u0026 Hudson Australia","version":"1.0","type":"link"}