The Hotei Encyclopedia of Japanese Woodblock Prints [Hardcover]

Amy Reigle Newland (Editor)

Book Description

Publication Date: January 2006

"The Hotei Encyclopedia of Japanese Woodblock Prints" will serve as a source of quick reference as well as an in-depth study of all aspects of Japanese prints from the Edo (1600-1868) to Taisho (1912-26) periods. The first volume of the encyclopedia is divided into four main subject areas: historical background, the art history of Ukiyo-e prints, print production (materials and techniques, the publishing trade) and the history of collecting Japanese prints, with a shorter fifth section on conservation. Each subject area contains a longer survey article which is accompanied by shorter essays that highlight specific topics pertaining to Japanese prints and their development. The second volume comprises an extensive alphabetical listing of well over 2000 carefully cross-referenced entries on individual print designers and schools, publishers, carvers, printers and collectors, major Kabuki actors, materials and techniques, conservation, subject-matter/iconography, literature and miscellaneous print-related terminology. This is followed by various appendices, including such aspects as seals of publishers and carvers, signatures, maps and chronological tables. With this ambitious project Hotei Publishing fills the need for an extensive reference work and introduction to Japanese prints, one that will prove a valuable resource for teachers and students, art collectors, librarians and interested lay-people alike.

Editorial Reviews

Review

Greatly surpasses anything available in a Western language, if not Japanese as well. Thus I feel confident this volume will be indispensable not only as a reference work, but as a teaching tool for university courses in Japanese art.

About the Author

The main contributors include Dr Suzuki Juzo, Tokyo; Dr Harold Bolitho, Harvard University; Dr Samuel Leiter, Brooklyn College, CUNY; Dr Martha Chaiklin, Milwaukee Public Museum; Mr Lawrence Bickford, New York; Dr Ann Waswo, Oxford University; Dr Shigeru Oikawa, Japan's Women's University, Tokyo; Dr Louise Virgin, Worcester Art Museum; Dr Donald Jenkins, Portland Art Museum; Dr Tadashi Kobayashi, Gakushuin University, Tokyo; Ms Yu? Ying Brown, London; Dr Timon Screech, School of Oriental and African Studies (SOAS), University of London; Dr David Waterhouse, University of Toronto; Dr. Hans Thomsen, University of Chicago; Dr Elisabeth de Sabato Swinton, Curator of Asian Art Emeritus, Worcester Art Museum; Dr Julie Nelson Davis, University of Pennsylvania; Dr Toshiyuki Suzuki, Chuo University; Dr John Carpenter, School of Oriental and African Studies (SOAS), University of London; Dr Ellis Tinios, Honorary Lecturer, University of Leeds; Dr Hiroko Kitagawa, Ikeda Bunko, Osaka; Dr Melinda Takeuchi, Stanford University; Mr B.W. Robinson, London; Mr Gary Hickey, University of Melbourne; Dr Helen Merritt, Northern Illinois University; Dr Guita Winkel, University of Leiden; Dr Ken Brown, California State University; Dr Chiaki Ajioka, Sydney; Ms Setsuko Abe, Sobi Gallery, Tokyo; Ms Shiho Sasaki, ICA; Dr Roger Keyes, Brown University; Dr Peter Kornicki, Cambridge University, Curator of Asian Arts; Dr Sarah E. Thompson, Museum of Fine Arts, Boston; Dr Julia Meech, New York; Mr Max Put, Leiden; Ms Pauline Webber, Victoria & Albert Museum.

Product Details

• Hardcover: 528 pages
• Publisher: Hotei Publishing (January 2006)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 9074822657
• ISBN-13: 978-9074822657
• Product Dimensions: 12.1 x 10 x 2.2 inches
• Shipping Weight: 9.4 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.3 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (3 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,293,879 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

17 of 17 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A splendid two-volume set, December 27, 2007

By 

W. Chang (VA, USA) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)    (REAL NAME)   

This review is from: The Hotei Encyclopedia of Japanese Woodblock Prints (Hardcover)

A truly outstanding publication, the two-volume work stands as a monument to the Japanese art of woodblock print that has so captured the imagination of artists and collectors alike in the past 400 years.

Volume I contains the meat of the book. Broadly divided into three historical periods - the Edo Period (1603-1868), the Meiji Period (1868-1912), and the Late Meiji to Taisho eras (early 1900-1926), the volume shares with readers numerous insightful articles written by scholars, from both sides of the Pacific Ocean, on Japanese history and arts, covering topics ranging from the origin of the woodblock prints, the various forms of prints (Ukiyo-e, Nagasaki-e, Sumo prints, etc.), seminal and landmark publishers of these masterpieces, to collecting and preserving woodblock prints. Last of which was particularly helpful since it brought up things to consider in collecting Ukiyo-e prints (quality, condition, and rarity) and the ways to discern originals prints from reproductions - though short in its coverage, it nevertheless highlights mistakes that casual collectors make on purchasing prints from shops and, especially, from on-line sources such as eBay. This volume also has many wonderfully reproduced woodblock prints.

Volume II (a thinner 180-page volume) provides further useful information. Contained within the volume are a 93-page glossary of print artists (including designers, illustrators, and collectors) and woodblock print terms, artist index in conjunction with lineage charts with information on major schools of print designers and their teacher/student relationships, artist signature facsimiles which can be used to identify artist's name on the print, censor seals, publisher seals, and an extensive and excellent bibliography.

The book is truly impressive in its breadth of coverage. As a novice to the world of Japanese woodblock prints, the two-volume work serves me well as an excellent introduction to this splendid art form. Any serious students of the subject will be well served to have this publication in their library. Although Amazon gives a generous discount to the book, it is still a fairly pricey item. If you don't want to purchase a copy, you can still marvel its contents by getting a copy from your local library (mostly likely via their interlibrary loan program). Either way, you will not be disappointed.

4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Hotei Encyclopedia, September 28, 2008

By 

Donald Lesh - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: The Hotei Encyclopedia of Japanese Woodblock Prints (Hardcover)

Useful for a beginning collector but the various essays do not provide new information. An in depth discussion of reprints and how to identify old, early impressions is really needed. The historical background is readily available elsewhere. The list of artist's signatures, publisher's seals and date seals is very useful.

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Beautiful quality, January 12, 2009

By 

ELS - See all my reviews

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: The Hotei Encyclopedia of Japanese Woodblock Prints (Hardcover)

I bought this text for my husband, who collects antique Japanese woodblock prints. The text is of gorgeous quality -- almost a work of art in itself (and not so easy to find).