"In November 1855, the Great Ansei Earthquake struck the city of Edo (now Tokyo), claiming 7,000 lives and inflicting widespread damage. Within days, a new type of color woodblock print known as namazu-e (lit. "catfish pictures") became popular among the residents of the shaken city. These prints featured depictions of mythical giant catfish (namazu) who, according to popular legend, caused earthquakes by thrashing about in their underground lairs. In addition to providing humor and social commentary, many prints claimed to offer protection from future earthquakes."
posted by madamjujujive on Apr 8, 2011 - 19 comments

Nyanto mo Neko Darake (Cats of Many Varieties) is an exhibition in Kyoto featuring charming Edo-period (19th century) woodblock images of cats: playful cats forming themselves into the Japanese word for "blowfish," giant monster heads and skulls made of intertwining cats, ghost cats seeking vengeance. [more inside]
posted by shirobara on Nov 18, 2010 - 6 comments

Pictures of 100 poems by 100 poets, explained by a Wet Nurse - Hokusai's pictures describe what the poems do in the head of a wet nurse. With high resolution scans.
posted by tellurian on Jun 29, 2008 - 9 comments

Becoming a '??' (tradesman) in Japan. A 'gaijin' entrepreneur has been detailing his woodblock printing craft and business in a self-published quarterly journal over the past 15+ years. I found his series of autobiographical essays to be a very worthwhile read, reminiscent of Pirsig's first novel for some reason.
posted by Heywood Mogroot on Apr 8, 2005 - 13 comments

The Kunisada Project , dedicated to one of the greatest ukiyo-e artists.
posted by plep on Mar 16, 2003 - 4 comments

Look no further than John Fiorillo's Viewing of Japanese Prints for the definitive online resource on the art. Covering over three centuries of Japanese print making from Ukiyo-e through Shin Hanga and Sôsaku Hanga, Viewing has detailed histories and critiques of the artists, including such legendary masters as Katsushika Hokusai. The site also includes a wealth of information on the artform itself, with essays on topics as varied as the deciphering of prints and the various forms of poetry found on them, as well as archival notes on print fading. Have a question for the man himself? Shogun Gallery's discussion board is one of his favorite haunts, where he helps users with questions ranging from signature identification to the allusions found within a specific print. Given the wealth of information and beauty of the work, this site's a treasure.
posted by J. R. Hughto on Jul 31, 2002 - 9 comments