Hirosige biography

The origins of the huge historical changes that entailed the formation of the city culture of Japan were due to the rapid socio-economic, political and ideological reforms in the life of Japanese society, as a result of which an original urban culture has developed.

This happened in the Tokugawa era in Japanese historiography, it is customary to call the period in the history of the country, when the military-fake government was headed by representatives of the feudal house of Tokugawa. In the system of historical periodization, the Tokugawa era adopted in Japan belongs to the Kinsai era. It is translated into English as Early Modern.

We can say that it was a kind of transitional era from the Middle Ages to the New Time, which lasted the year ”, up to the Meiji period - this time is characterized by N. The events of the year received the name of Meijin in Japanese historiography. As a result of these events, the shogunate was liquidated, and the power in the country nominally passed to the emperor.

The Tokugava era preceded the troubled time; The entire second half of the 16th century was marked by the struggle for the unification of the country. The battle of Sekigahara put an end to a long period of internecine wars, and peace and political stability came in the country. The new stage has begun by the name of the winner in the battle - Tokugawa Ieyasu, who in the year declared himself Segun in this book preserved the order adopted in Japan in writing names and surnames: in the first place the surname, in the second - the name.

Thus, he laid the foundation for the third shogunat to the Tokugawa shogun - “military leader” in the history of Japan, this title was assigned to the military rulers of Japan from the Minamoto, Asikaga dynasties and, finally, Tokugawa. But this period is also known as the “era of Edo” - by the name of the city, which became the residence of the Seguns of Tokugawa. It should be noted that during the entire period of Tokugawa, the nominal capital of the country remained the city of Kyoto, where the emperor lived, although Edo was the real political center.

The capital of Edo was the residence of Segunes and the city of samurai, it differed by a number of features. Elite aristocratic areas occupied large spaces, including gardens and parks in addition to buildings. They coexisted with densely populated quarters of artisans and merchants. The city was located on the shores of the Gulf of Education, reminiscent of the crescent with its outlines.

A large trading port, with many natural and artificial channels and rivers, made the face of the city and its character unique. The city had many different markets and warehouses of food and industrial goods. Their characteristic buildings and walls, painted white, have become a kind of symbol of Edo, which was reflected in the engravings of Japanese artists. In the capital, especially in its densely populated areas, fires were frequent, which were a real disaster of this huge, entirely wooden city.

The curves and extremely narrow streets of residential quarters, which were originally built for defense since the city was laid in the conditions of political fragmentation and internecine wars, contributed a lot of fires. It was even customary to congratulate each other on a foggy night, since the probability of a fire decreased. The majority of the population during the Tokugawa period in Edo were men: samurai, sailors, merchants, artisans.

In addition, the hostage policy of Sankin Kodai, suggested a long stay in Edo Daimyo and Samurai, who came with their many retinue, while their families remained at home, in the provinces. The favorite place of their pastime was the entertainment quarters of the Yoshivara officially permitted by the government, which literally means the “reed field”, where social prohibitions were removed.

Subsequently, the initial hieroglyphs were rewritten on the same sound “fun field”. In this series, Hirosige has repeatedly depicts various approaches to the quarter, showing only the roofs of his buildings. Geisha literally “women of art” living there gave Yosivara a very special flavor. Educated interlocutors, pleasant in all respects dancer and singer, they also owned the art of playing musical instruments.

There is a textbook statement that the Tokugawa period was a time of stagnation and isolation from the outside world, which later led to the backwardness of Japan. Indeed, at first glance, the era of Edo, or Tokugawa, was not rich in bright events, but it was the character and level of political, socio-economic and, of course, cultural development entailed the emergence of urban culture.

Huge wealth, financial power steadily focused in the hands of artisans and merchants Osaka, Kyoto, Edo, united in the category of Tenin - citizens. It should be noted that the Society of the Edo period developed in conditions of rigid regulation, which affect all layers, "but most of all hit the third and fourth estates - artisans and merchants."The townspeople were forced to look for their own forms of expression, as a result, urban culture was the most striking phenomenon of this period.

In the visual arts, the most characteristic form of its existence was the engraving of Ukiyo -e, in dramaturgy - the Kabuki Theater, in the literature - a variety of fiction genres, ”as M. notes the interests of urban art, but any of its manifestations, including the engraving of Ukiye -e, are united by two important qualities - entertainment and informativeness. The life of the citizens of the capital proceeded according to their laws, they had their own language, their holidays, customs and had to have their own art.

They became an engraving of Ukiyo -e, most of which belongs to the genres of bidzin - images of beautiful women of fun quarters, Yakusya -e -e -gystem of actors, Musya -e - the image of the soldiers, the latter originated and took shape as an independent genre - Fukeige - landscape. Whatever the plot of engravings, he always painted the world in front of the viewer is ordinary and easily recognizable, but at the same time illusory.

Another important quality of engraving was in its information content. It was the engraving that almost initially played the role of a kind of media. The allocation of engravings in an independent form of art is customary to attribute to the second half of the 17th century and to associate with the name of the artist Khicikawa Marino Boam, who released engravings on separate sheets - Itimaea.

Prior to this, an engraving existed in the form of a book illustration. The engraving of Ukiyo, until the middle of the 18th century, was black and white Sumizuri-e and was printed from one board, the so-called key block, which transmitted only linear contour images. Soon, attempts were made to introduce color into an engraving. The contour pattern was painted by hand first with one, and later - two or three colors.