Floating World of Ukiyo-E: Shadows, Dreams and Substance

The exquisite, colorful Japanese woodblock prints that represent the art of Ukiyo-e first flourished in 17th-century Edo (now Tokyo). Today these "pictures of the floating world" are the most popular form of Japanese art. This elegant book takes a fresh look at Ukiyo-e, showcasing a never-before-published trove of Japanese prints, drawings, and books from the collection of the Library of Congress in Washington, D.C.

Known masterpieces by such names as Hiroshige and Hokusai stand alongside rare and unusual works. Colors are exceptionally vivid, in part because the art has never been exhibited and is rarely handled. The beauty of the book will delight art lovers, while the cutting-edge scholarship and unusually comprehensive bibliography will also excite the specialist and collector.
160 illustrations in full color, 232 pages, 9 x 11"September

Katherine L. Blood is fine print curator in the Prints and Photographs division of the Library of Congress.
James Douglas Farquhar is professor of art history at the University of Maryland and a historian of 15th-century northern European painting.
Sandy Kita is assistant professor of Japanese art history at the University of Maryland.
Lawrence E. Marceau is associate professor of Japanese at the University of Delaware.