Kiyomidzu Temple in Kyoto 1615 - 1868

Curator: Hishikawa Moronobu's woodcut print, Kiyomidzu Temple in Kyoto, produced sometime between 1615 and 1868, captures a moment of quietude. Editor: It’s a simple composition, almost sparse, but that line work! It gives the scene an elegant, breezy feel. Curator: The ukiyo-e tradition to which Moronobu belonged arose with the development of a sophisticated merchant class and a widespread commercial publishing industry in Edo. It’s amazing to think about how these prints were relatively affordable and widely distributed. Editor: I see that availability in the technique, in the very visible lines and shapes. It's a constructed landscape, using the woodcut to create flatness, juxtaposing different elements in distinct planes, almost diagrammatic. How interesting that it’s found within this highly industrialized form. Curator: It is the material accessibility that gave ukiyo-e its power to disseminate images and ideas to a broad public. Look closely at the people. Their clothes, their activities…These are markers of a particular moment in the economy of leisure. This image captures the production of culture and consumerism, as ordinary citizens began participating in the floating world. Editor: Yes, and visually, the robes of the figures become intricate patterns of the whole. Note how that contrasts with the clean, deliberate outlines of the architecture. Curator: Precisely! That building isn't just architecture, it's a symbol of social mobility through travel and tourism. Editor: But look at how the eye travels; Moronobu uses delicate linework, really drawing out the nuances in each object in the work. This allows the image to transcend mere reproduction to enter something more. Curator: The network of artisanal production that enabled its creation is something we also must note. Its reproduction and consumption by the masses shaped desires and ideas that altered society. Editor: True, the work's circulation definitely tells its own story. What I love about the work's graphic language are these tensions that define it—accessibility versus intentional design, realism versus fantasy. It is almost a portal into the complex moment in time. Curator: The fact that the work gives us access to that historical moment through its existence as a tradable commodity—made by human hands—gives me great respect for the possibilities within material existence.