Yūgiri and Izaemon c. 1801

Kitagawa Utamaro's print, Yūgiri and Izaemon, was made using woodblocks and colored inks, a quintessential technique of the Edo period. The process begins with a key block, carved to define the image’s outlines, with additional blocks for each color. Consider the paper itself, thin and absorbent, allowing the inks to soak in and create those delicate, translucent effects. The crispness of the lines and the subtle gradations of color – these speak to the expertise of the carvers and printers, artisans in their own right. Utamaro's genius was in his ability to design images that maximized the potential of this process, creating prints that were both beautiful and commercially viable. These prints were made to be bought, sold, and traded among people. The widespread popularity of woodblock prints depended on a division of labor, a true cottage industry. Paying attention to the materiality of the print reminds us of the many hands involved, and the complex system of production that made these images available to a wide audience.