Timeline
The life and career of Ukiyo-e, 1603–None
The Edo period begins; the rise of urban merchant culture creates the audience for ukiyo-e
Hishikawa Moronobu, regarded as the form's first master, popularizes single-sheet prints and illustrated books in Edo
Suzuki Harunobu and his collaborators perfect the full-color print (nishiki-e), the "brocade picture"
The mysterious Sharaku produces his bold kabuki actor portraits during a brief career of about ten months
Kitagawa Utamaro is at the height of his fame for refined portraits of beautiful women (bijin-ga)
Hokusai publishes Thirty-six Views of Mount Fuji, including The Great Wave, using imported Prussian blue
Hiroshige's Fifty-three Stations of the Tokaido establishes him as the master of the landscape print
Hiroshige publishes One Hundred Famous Views of Edo, including Sudden Shower over Shin-Ohashi Bridge
Hiroshige dies during a cholera epidemic; the Utagawa school dominates the print trade
The Meiji Restoration begins Japan's modernization; photography and lithography hasten the decline of classic ukiyo-e
The critic Philippe Burty coins the term Japonisme for the European craze for Japanese art
Vincent van Gogh paints oil copies of Hiroshige prints, reflecting ukiyo-e's deep influence on Western art
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1930s
1 photographs from the 1930s
