Kuragano: The Karasu River
c. 1835–36 · Woodblock print; ink and colour on paper · National Diet Library, Tokyo
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About this work
- Artist
- Keisai Eisen (1790–1848)
- Year
- c. 1835–36
- Medium
- Woodblock print; ink and colour on paper
- Original size
- approx. 23 × 35 cm (horizontal ōban)
- Collection
- National Diet Library, Tokyo (impression pid 1306294, call no. 寄別2-2-1-5; many other impressions exist)
- Movement
- Ukiyo-e
- Series
- Sixty-nine Stations of the Kisokaidō
Children play in a shallow stream, one balancing on the beam of a small sluice gate and two wading naked with a fishing basket. At the right a woman in blue kneels on a plank landing to rinse a tub, and another in a patterned kimono leans on a fence beneath a reed awning. Beyond, boatmen pole along the Karasu River below green hills. This is print thirteen of The Sixty-nine Stations of the Kisokaidō, published by Hōeidō (Takenouchi Magohachi), c. 1835–36. Keisai Eisen, who designed it, began the series and Utagawa Hiroshige completed it. Kuragano was the twelfth station on the Nakasendō, the inland road from Edo to Kyoto; impressions vary in colour and condition.
This exhibition-poster edition shows the whole work beneath original typography set in-house. The original is in the public domain.
Where it works
Pale river blue, soft green hills and a straw-gold awning, for a living room, study or hallway at 16×24 in natural wood. It pairs with Takasaki: By the Karasu River, the next station on the same river.
Style, size & framing detail
- Style
- Exhibition poster of a Ukiyo-e painting
- Era
- 19th century (c. 1835–36)
- Orientation
- Portrait
- Palette
- cream & beige
- Mood
- classic
- Rooms
- living room, hallway or entryway, study or library, dining room
- Good gift for
- housewarming, art lovers
Size. We'd hang this one at 16×24. Prints at 12×18, 16×24, 24×36 in — 12×18 for a shelf, desk or a gallery-wall grid; 16×24 above a desk, console or in a hallway; 24×36 as the statement piece above a sofa or bed.
Framing. Exhibition posters sit best in a slim black frame with no mat — the typeset margin is the mat.
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 Kuragano: The Karasu River in the public domain?
What is it printed on?
When was Kuragano: The Karasu River painted, and in what medium?
What size works above a sofa or bed?
About this design
The Madten promise
A fine-art print
The same artwork as a clean fine-art print — the image shown large with a minimal caption.
