couple struggle over love letter, Suzuki Harunobu

Artwork Overview

Suzuki Harunobu, couple struggle over love letter
Suzuki Harunobu, couple struggle over love letter
Suzuki Harunobu
couple struggle over love letter
late 1800s–early 1900s, Meiji period (1868–1912) or Taisho period (1912–1926)
Suzuki Harunobu
circa 1725–1770
couple struggle over love letter, late 1800s–early 1900s, Meiji period (1868–1912) or Taisho period (1912–1926)
Where object was made: Japan
Material/technique: color woodcut
Dimensions:
Image Dimensions Height/Width (Height x Width): 282 x 198 mm
Image Dimensions Height/Width (Height x Width): 11 1/8 x 7 13/16 in
Sheet/Paper Dimensions (Height x Width): 350 x 257 mm
Sheet/Paper Dimensions (Height x Width): 13 3/4 x 10 1/8 in
Credit line: Source unknown
Accession number: 0000.2025.09
Not on display
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Label texts

Archive Label date unknown: These five prints are part of a complete set of progressive color proofs block-printed for a facsimile edition of a woodblock print published by Harunobu in the late 1760s. They were made to illustrate the woodblock printing process, probably for a Western audience. Making a woodblock print required the collaboration of many specialists and was coordinated by a publishing house. First a publisher, or sometimes a wealthy connoisseur, commissioned the work, often suggesting the sujbect and sometimes even specifying the design. The publisher also provided the capital and oversaw each stage of the project. When he recieved the commission, the artist made a painting in sumi ink on thin paper and submitted it to the publisher. An artisan then pasted the painting, or a copy of it, face down on a smooth slab of hardwood such as catalpa or cherry. Then he, or another specialist, carved and gouged away the portions of the woodblock that were not to be printed, leaving only the fine outlines of the original sketch. The block was then cleaned and inked. The paper to be printed was carefully laid on the block and vigorously rubbed from the back with a hard round pad, known as a baren by Western printmakers. The resulting impression in black on an off-white paper was the sumizuri-e (ink print), the basis of all Japanese printing.