Page 133 - 2021 March 16th Japanese and Korean Art, Christie's New York City

Property from an Important Private Institution
(LOTS 83–108)

92 UTAGAWA HIROSHIGE (1797-1858)

Kameido ume yashiki (Plum estate, Kameido)

Woodblock print, from the series Meisho Edo
hyakkei (One hundred views of Edo), signed
Hiroshige ga, date sealed Snake 11 (1857, 11th
month), published by Uoya Eikichi
Vertical oban: 14¿ x 9Ω in. (35.9 x 24.1 cm.)

$10,000-20,000

Umeyashikiis the name of a plum garden on the bank of
the Sumida River that drew large numbers of visitors to
enjoy the view and scent of the blossoming trees in early
spring. Hiroshige's striking design places the trunk and
branches of a plum tree boldly in the foreground. The
shape of this particular tree led to it becoming known as
Resting Dragon Plum (Garyubai), because its branches
grew so long they re-entered the earth. The viewer is
obliged to look through the branches of the tree and
of those behind to see a group of visitors to the garden
admiring the blossoms from behind a fence. The unusual
and dramatic vantage point and bold use of color are
characteristics that inspired 19th-century artists such
as Vincent van Gogh, Claude Monet and James McNeill
Whistler and in many cases dramatically influenced
their work. Another impression of this particular print
was acquired by van Gogh and inspired him to such an
extent that, along with A Sudden Shower over Ohashi
and Atake by Hiroshige, he produced his own version in
oil, Flowering Plum Orchard (after Hiroshige), 1887, now
in the Van Gogh Museum, Amsterdam.