This review originally appeared on Goodreads on January 15, 2013.

Yoshitoshi's Women: The Woodblock-Print Series Fuzoku Sanjuniso

By John Stevenson – University of Washington Press – 1995

Review by Robin Marx

This handsome volume offers an in-depth look at one of Yoshitoshi Tsukioka's most remarkable series of woodblock prints. The book opens with an excellent summary of Yoshitoshi's life as well as the ukiyo-e creative process, making it appropriate for both newcomers to Japanese art and the already initiated.

Each print in the series is given a full two page spread, with one page devoted to the artwork and the other providing in-depth commentary. The descriptions are fascinating and extremely illuminating, cluing the modern viewer in on allusions, metaphors, and other pieces of cultural context that the contemporary Japanese audience would've naturally understood.

From literature to fashion and material culture, the multidisciplinary depth of John Stevenson's research is truly impressive, and the presentation is clear and engaging. I've been a fan of Yoshitoshi's artwork for years, but this book helped me gain an even deeper appreciation of his work. Highly recommended.

★★★★☆

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This review originally appeared on Goodreads on January 15, 2013.

Japanese Colour Prints

By Jack Ronald Hillier – Phaidon Press – August 12, 1998

Review by Robin Marx

This book was a bit of a disappointment. The opening essay offered a decent overview of the history of ukiyo-e, but those readers without a background in art history (and ideally some knowledge of Japanese art) are likely to find it confusing and unhelpful.

While most of the most notable artists are present and accounted for, the example prints selected were lacking in several instances. Harunobu, Utamaro, Hokusai, and Hiroshige were all incredibly influential artists, yet the prints chosen for them are far from their best work.

The commentary accompanying the prints is also spotty. Rather than providing some much-needed cultural context for Kabuki scenes, allusions, etc., featured in the print, Hillier tends to go off on extraneous tangents about that artists' pupils.

I also felt Hillier's decision to exclude late period prints (after the introduction of foreign aniline dyes) was pure snobbery. He argues that “...few of the later prints rise above either ineffectual prettiness, or violently colored melodrama,” but Yoshitoshi was one of the giants of the art form, and dismissing his work is unforgivable.

In the end, this book offers a decent, unspectacular survey of the ukiyo-e art form, with commentary that goes into a little too much detail in arcane areas. Who is the audience for this book? Pairing introductory artwork with beginner-unfriendly text seems like a strange editorial decision. The artwork is nice, but I'd recommend those interested in ukiyo-e either look elsewhere, or supplement their reading with additional books.

★★☆☆☆

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