Process Is the Point at IFPDA Print Fair

The International Fine Prints and Drawings Association (IFPDA) Print Fair returned to New York’s Park Avenue Armory, featuring 80 global galleries, publishers, and print studios. The event showcased a diverse range of works, from 19th-century Japanese ukiyo-e masterworks by Hokusai to contemporary pieces by artists such as Kiki Smith, Julie Mehretu, and David Hockney. Notable highlights included Kiki Smith’s massive 12-foot watercolor "Wooden Moon" and Paula Rego’s influential abortion etchings, which were recently acquired by the Metropolitan Museum of Art.

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Katsushika Hokusai's iconic woodblock print "The Great Wave" (officially *Under the Wave off Kanagawa*) is examined through three lesser-known facts. The article notes that the print, created between 1830 and 1832, is surprisingly small—less than 15 inches wide—and that its vivid blue pigment, Prussian blue, was a recent European import that revolutionized Japanese ukiyo-e prints. It also highlights Hokusai's practice of adopting over 30 different names throughout his career, which now helps scholars periodize his work.

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A new exhibition at the British Museum, “Hiroshige: Artist of the Open Road,” showcases over 100 works by the Japanese ukiyo-e master Utagawa Hiroshige, including a landmark gift of 35 prints from U.S. collector Alan Medaugh. Many of the prints have never been publicly displayed before, and some are believed to be the only surviving examples of their kind. The show runs through September 7 and features landscapes, bird-and-flower prints, fan prints, and an immersive digital experience created with Outernet London.

Van Gogh’s love of Hiroshige, the Japanese master of the landscape, is reflected in a British Museum exhibition

The British Museum's exhibition "Hiroshige: Artist of the Open Road" (through September 7) showcases over 100 prints by the Japanese master Utagawa Hiroshige, including rare loans that highlight his influence on European avant-garde artists. A key display is Vincent van Gogh's own copy of Hiroshige's "The Plum Garden at Kameido" (1857), on loan from the Van Gogh Museum in Amsterdam, along with Van Gogh's squared-up tracing used for his painting. New research by British Museum senior scientist Capucine Korenberg reveals a short pencil line on the print that confirms Van Gogh used this exact copy as a guide for his tracing and subsequent painting.

A Guide to David Hockney’s Most Important Print Series

Lougher Contemporary, a UK-based specialist in blue-chip editions, has identified David Hockney's five most important print series for collectors. The series include the iconic Pool Series, inspired by Los Angeles swimming pools; the iPad Drawings, which began with the iPhone and evolved into works like 'The Arrival of Spring'; and The Weather Series, a set of six color lithographs influenced by Japanese Ukiyo-e prints. Other series are also highlighted for their market value and artistic significance.

Hiroshige: Artist of the Open Road review – ‘I could look forever at these passing moments in cosmic colours’

The British Museum presents a rapturous exhibition of Utagawa Hiroshige's prints, showcasing the early 19th-century Japanese artist's vivid, Technicolor depictions of fleeting moments in Edo (now Tokyo). The show highlights his innovative use of rain, snow, and everyday scenes, such as pleasure boats, cherry blossoms, and temporary riverside restaurants, and includes a final section on his global influence, though critics find this epilogue rushed.

Manet Under the Magnifying Glass

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A new documentary film titled 'Le Monde dans un tableau : les lampes de Manet' offers a detailed investigation into Édouard Manet's final major painting, 'Un bar aux Folies Bergère'. The film features an eclectic mix of interviewees, from a Folies Bergère lighting technician to a Shintō monk and a Tokyo print editor, weaving together art history and broader historical context around the iconic work.

A Wave of Japanese Art and Culture Immerses College of DuPage in ‘Floating World’ Exhibition

The Cleve Carney Museum of Art at the College of DuPage has opened "Hokusai & Ukiyo-e: The Floating World," an immersive exhibition exploring Japanese ukiyo-e art from the Edo period. The show features woodblock prints and scrolls, including Hokusai's iconic "The Great Wave Off Kanagawa," drawn from the collection of 19th-century Italian engraver Edoardo Chiossone. Many prints are on view in the U.S. for the first time. The exhibition extends beyond traditional display with an outdoor garden, manga and anime rooms, and a recreated Edo village built by the college's theater department.