Currently not on view
Perspective Picture of Whale Hunting in Kumano Bay (Uki-e Kumano ura kujira tsuki no zu 浮絵 熊野浦鯨突之図),
ca. 1770–75
Published by Iseya Sanjirō 伊勢屋三次郎
Information
ca. 1770–75
Asia, Japan, Kumano Bay
Scene of whale hunting at Kumano Bay with a village at the base of the hills at right. Boats steer out to attack two whales at left. Harpoons can be seen in the air and in the back of the nearest whale as it surfaces to expel air through its blowhole. This first edition print survives in exceptionally good condition with its original vibrant colors. The remarkable state of this print can be seen in comparison to the faded examples in the Museum of Fine Arts, Boston (see Comparanda) and at the Minneapolis Institute of Art.
Kumano 熊野 is located at the southern tip of the Kii Peninsula, about 100 km south of Osaka. Whaling is said to have begun in the Kumano Sea coast area in the early Edo period and is still part of the region’s culture. At Koya-zaka Slope 高野坂 along the Kumano Kodō 熊野古道 pilgrimage route, the "Whale Mountain Trail" (Kujira yamami ato 鯨山見跡) was used to spot offshore whales so as to alert the fishing boats.
Toyoharu was the founder of the Utagawa school and was known for his “perspective pictures” (ukie 浮絵), which incorporated Western pictorial methods to create the impression of spatial recession. Toyoharu studied art in Kyoto, then in Edo (present-day Tokyo). In 1768 he began to design woodblock prints and became known for his “perspective pictures” of famous sites and copies of Western and Chinese perspective prints. Although not the first perspective prints in Japan, his were the first to be rendered in multiple-colors, known as “brocade pictures” (nishiki-e 錦絵). Toyoharu may have introduced landscape as a subject in woodblock prints, when before they had only served as backgrounds for other subjects. The Utagawa school grew to dominate woodblock printing in the 19th century with artists such as Utamaro, Hiroshige, and Kuniyoshi.
