Kanbara: Night Snow
1833–34 · Woodblock print; ink and colour on paper · The Cleveland Museum of Art
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This print
About this work
- Artist
- Utagawa Hiroshige (1797–1858)
- Year
- 1833–34
- Medium
- Woodblock print; ink and colour on paper
- Original size
- 22.6 × 35.5 cm
- Collection
- The Cleveland Museum of Art (impression 1985.317; many other impressions exist)
- Movement
- Ukiyo-e
- Series
- Fifty-three Stations of the Tōkaidō
Snow falls through a dark night sky over a sleeping village, its roofs, hills and trees heavy with white. Three travellers make their way along the empty street, one bent under a straw umbrella and two wrapped in straw capes, the only movement in the scene. The print is number sixteen in the Fifty-three Stations of the Tōkaidō, published by Hōeidō (Takenouchi Magohachi) in 1833–34. Kanbara, the fifteenth station, lies on the mild coast of Suruga Bay, where heavy snow is rare, so the scene is usually read as Hiroshige's own invention rather than a record of the town. The night sky is printed in a grey that deepens toward the top; impressions vary in colour and condition.
This full-bleed edition prints the work edge to edge from a high-resolution scan of the original, very slightly cropped (a few percent at most) to fit the sheet. The gallery edition shows the whole work, uncropped. The original is in the public domain.
Where it works
Charcoal night and soft white snow with a few small figures, for a bedroom, study or hallway at 36×24 in black. It pairs with Kameyama: Clear Weather after Snow for two winter scenes from the road.
Style, size & framing detail
- Style
- Ukiyo-e painting
- Era
- 19th century (1833–34)
- Orientation
- Landscape
- Palette
- cornflower blue
- Mood
- calm
- Rooms
- bedroom, hallway or entryway, study or library, living room, dining room
- Good gift for
- housewarming, travelers, art lovers
Size. We'd hang this one at 36×24. Prints at 18×12, 24×16, 36×24 in — 18×12 for a shelf, desk or a gallery-wall grid; 24×16 above a console or sideboard; 36×24 as the statement piece above a sofa or headboard.
Framing. Printed edge to edge: a slim black or natural wood frame right to the image, or let the canvas wrap do the framing. Also available gallery-wrapped on canvas, ready to hang with no frame.
Pairing. Pairs as a set of three with other famous painting prints (10% off three or more).
Details & materials
Shipping & returns
Is this the whole painting, or a crop?
Is Kanbara: Night Snow in the public domain?
What is it printed on?
When was Kanbara: Night Snow painted, and in what medium?
What size works above a sofa or bed?
About this design
The Madten promise
An exhibition poster
The same artwork as a gallery exhibition poster — title, artist & date typeset beneath the image on a soft ground.
A fine-art print
The same artwork as a clean fine-art print — the image shown large with a minimal caption.
