Impressions of Japan

In 2015, the Swiss Musée Jenisch Vevey received a bequest that also comprised around 2,000 Japanese coloured woodblock prints (ukiyo-e). Many of them originate from the workshops of the most famous artists of the Utagawa school, who were active between 1765 and 1930 and are rarely represented in European collections. They stand out due to their fine printing technique, the use of precious materials and vibrant colours, as well as their excellent state of preservation. The collection also includes some 350 sketches and final preparatory drawings pasted onto the block for printing (shita-e), which are usually destroyed during the printing process. They offer an impressive insight into the artists’ creative process before a final drawing is submitted to the printer for execution.

Impressions of Japan features 200 ukiyo-e, shita-e, and sketches from the mid 19th to early 20th century. They depict kabuki theatre scenes, textile art, the joys and pleasures of Japanese society, famous fairy tales, travelling in and around the landscapes of Japan. Scholarly essays and an appendix offering explanations of printmaking techniques, types of paper used, and about printmaking in 21st-century Japan supplement the images. The beautifully designed book will appeal particularly to experts and lovers of coloured Japanese woodblock prints.