Woodblock Print
How did the use of woodblock printing change art in Japan?
It was the first time anywhere that art really began to belong to the masses– well, not *all* the masses, since the peasants had no disposable income, but for everyone above that class, it opened a major door. Prints were much cheaper than originals, and it became possible for people accross the empire to see the work of a particular artist that would have been confined to his own small area prior to the advent of printing.
It began a conversation about art that hadn’t been possible before. At one point, a traveling merchant might have written to a partner that he had seen a new style of art in Edo that he enjoyed very much. After printing, the merchant could actually send the art for next to nothing, along with some words about it: ‘Don’t you just love this new style from Edo? It perfectly captures both the energy and elegance of this new age. I think we could profit from copying the clothes they are wearing here, and have commissioned several prints for the shop in Kyoto to promote the style’.
It also became possible for people to view images of culturally important places and people– Mt. Fuji, etc– that many would never have had a chance to see in person. As such, art quickly became a major component of what gave the average man and woman a sense of ‘Japanese-ness’, of being part of the empire as a whole, concerned with the thoughts and trends and styles of the entire nation, not just their own province– art was a glue that helped bind the culture together.
Japanese Traditional Craft Culture “Wood Block Prints” from Doshisha MBA
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