Japanese Woodblock Prints

Explore the history and evolution of Japanese woodblock prints from their inception to current applications in contemporary art. How do we read woodblock prints? How do we understand the diversity of traditional subjects–from actors to courtesans to landscapes? How were these prints interpreted (and appropriated) by audiences outside of Japan? And how do prints influence popular culture? This course offers a deep dive into the dynamic history of one artistic medium.

Image Credit: Yōshū (Hashimoto) Chikanobu, Nobility in the Evening Cool (Koki nōryō no zu), 1887. Polychrome woodblock print. Metropolitan Museum of Art.