Ukiyo E Books

[jawob]

Hello, Hoping that someone can point me in the direction of large sized Ukiyo e books, especially Kunisada's work. I have Kuniyoshi by Matthi Forrer, which is perfect. Finding a large format book is proving a bit difficult, many being 9 x 11. Any suggestions are greatly appreciated. Thanks in advance.  Jeff

[Richard Thomas]

There are Taschen books that are exceptional but pretty expensive now .. first edition xxl version of Hiroshige 100 views of edo I have seen people trying to get 2k for (left book in pic) !! Any way Kunisada specifically, maybe have a look at Genji’s World (right book), that is all kunisada but only 11.5 x 11.5 ..  The enormous Taschen book in the middle of the pic below is all artists and had some Kunisada, it’s called Japanese Woodblock Prints by Andreas Marks .. it’s the xxl version by Taschen and is 16 x 11.5 x 2.5 inches.. careful of the sizes for Taschen there are smaller versions , the large ones are incredible quality ..

 

 

 

Cheers Rich

 

[jawob]

Richard, Thanks for the suggestions! I've had my eye on the Marks book. I should have mentioned my main interest is in depictions of samurai, mythology, and folktales. Would the Marks book fit this bill? Thanks

[Richard Thomas]

Hey Jeff,

Right, so warriors , hero’s,  legends and ghosts .. exactly my jam as well .. I specialise in Kuniyosh for collecting purposes but interested in all .. the Marks Taschen book covers all genres and many artists so it’s not ‘chokka block’ with what you are after but does have some nice ones 

 
 

 

for research and reference, I use these books for our genres of interest:

 

Japanese warrior prints by James King and Yuriko Iwakiri has many artists and from the very earliest to later musha-e.. example page:

heros and ghosts by Robert Schaap, is just kuniyoshi, example page:

though non of them are as large a format as the Matti Forrer book (which I included in pic for your reference as you have that one … 

hope that helps somewhat !!

cheers Rich

[jawob]

Thanks very much Richard. There are a couple titles that I had not come across and will be purchasing. It can be frustrating finding titles that have full size or enlarged plates, as I am using them for art reference. Is the Kuniyoshi: The Warrior Prints worth owning? As I understand there are a lot of b&w photos? Really appreciate your time and photos I am able to form a much clearer picture than off Amazon.  Best  Jeff

[Richard Thomas]

Jeff, you’re right, Robinson Kuniyoshi the warrior prints is not as visually rich as other books, there are some colour plates but mostly black and white. Though It is pretty much the standard reference for series identification in the west, but a little dated now. Kuniyoshi - the Arthur R Miller collection by Timothy Clark is good (top right) .. I find having multiple sources for reference is important, I.e the iconic triptych of Yoshitsune fighting Benkei on the Gojo bridge .. (Robinson T47 .. 1st State (super rare) shown in Bauer collection, 2nd state shown in Robinson and Hero’s n Ghosts, 3rd state in Kuniyoshi - Arthur Miller collection .. I think you will like Hero’s and Ghost also, lots of colour plates.. Rich

[jawob]

Really appreciate this information. These books being as pricey as they are I'd rather not be disappointed, as I need a large size for my artwork. In, due time, I would like them all!

[Mikaveli]

I don't know if it's remotely what you're looking for, but I just finished reading a book titled "Tokyo Before Tokyo".

 

I bought it to read about Edo's journey from 1603 through to 1868 - but as much as a history book, it's really an art history book - as much of the information in it comes from artwork depicting the city and life within it. Screens, scrolls and very often ukiyo-e.

 

Perhaps half the book is art, featuring around 100 works - with perhaps a quarter of the book displaying / discussing ukiyo-e, its iconography and the "Floating World" it emerged from.

[myochin]

Hello Jeff,

I would recommend catalogue #17 from Sebastian Izzard which is dedicated to Kunisada. Though it is Letter format it contains all the latest information on this artist.

 

Paul

[jawob]

Michael, While not exactly what I was looking for in the post, the book sounds like something I should have. Thanks for that, as it has not come across my radar.

 

Thanks Paul I will check it out!