I have found a new favorite artist (I admit it, I have quite a few favorites!) whose work I just can’t get enough of. Searching for and studying reproductions of Utagawa Kuniyoshi‘s woodblock prints has become something of an obsession. I especially love his animals and fighting samurai warriors, but the landscapes, crowds of people, mythology, women… hell, all of his work is nice.
His line work is incredible, along with the colors, but what really stands out are the patterns he uses. It’s so easy to get lost in them. He worked for his father as a pattern designer in the textile industry starting at the age of six or seven, so he really knows how to catch the eye and keep it interested.
Kuniyoshi was born in 1797 and is considered among the last of the great Japanese ukiyo-e woodblock printers. He was also a teacher and many other great artists, including Yoshitoshi, emerged from his school.
Maybe there are too many images included in this post… I just want to look at all of his work all the time!
