Hiroshige – Sudden Shower over Shin-Ohashi bridge and Atake (Utagawa Hiroshige – Ohashi Atake no Yudachi)

Japanese woodblock print. The first edition of this design was published in 1857. This print is not from the original woodblocks (that no longer exist), but a reprint from blocks carved by publisher Unsodo.

Utagawa Hiroshige’s “Sudden Shower” print is one of the most famous woodblock prints, alongside “The Great Wave off Kanagawa” by Katsushika Hokusai. It depicts a dynamic scene with heavy rain, where people brave the rain to cross the bridge, and a boatsman down below proceeds further on the river. The print is technically advanced, using bokashi in many places, for example, in the dark, menacing clouds. The rain consists of many thin lines, resulting in a superb depiction of a heavy downpour. It influenced not only many Japanese woodblock printmakers but also Western art through Van Gogh, Monet and many other Impressionists.

Image size (excluding margins): 21.5 * 33.5 cm (8.5 * 13.2 in).

The print is in excellent condition.

The pictures shown here are from the print itself.

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Utagawa Hiroshige (1797 – 1858) was one of the most famous Japanese woodblock print artists, considered the last great ukiyo-e master. He has had a lasting impact on both Japanese print artists as well as on Western painters such as Van Gogh and Monet and his prints are still widely admired to this day.

See an overview of Hiroshige's woodblock prints