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| Japanese Erotic Prints: Shunga by Harunobu and Koryusai | 
 enlarge | Author: Inge Klompmakers
Publisher: Hotei Publishing
Category: Book
List Price: $53.00
Buy New: $50.35
You Save: $2.65 (5%)
New (7) Used (3) from $50.35
Avg. Customer Rating:  2 reviews
Media: Paperback
Edition: 1st
Number Of Items: 1
Pages: 160
Shipping Weight (lbs): 2.1
Dimensions (in): 11.6 x 9.6 x 0.6
ISBN: 9074822371
Dewey Decimal Number: 709
EAN: 9789074822374
ASIN: 9074822371
Publication Date: May 30, 2001
Availability: Usually ships in 1-2 business days
Condition: Brand New, Perfect Condition, Please allow 4-14 business days for delivery. 100% Money Back Guarantee, Over 1,000,000 customers served.
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Product Description
This publication offers the reader a ravishing selection of erotic prints ("shunga") by the first full-color woodblock-print masters: Suzuki Harunobu (c. 1725-70) and Isoda Koryusai (act. c. 1764-88). It is based on a private collection of prints of remarkable quality, their radiant colors perfectly preserved by the albums in which they were kept. The first volume in a popular series on erotic prints by famous Japanese woodblock-print artists, this book contains a detailed general introduction to the genre of "shunga". In addition to a description of the historical and cultural settings of the prints, it focuses in particular on the locations and interiors where the erotic action takes place.
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| Customer Reviews:
Great book March 1, 2006
7 out of 7 found this review helpful
My boyfriend is a huge fan of japanese prints. I bought him two Shunga titles after weeks and weeks of research and this is by far his favorite of the two. The significance of this particular book is that it features a large quantity of work by japans first two Shunga artists that produced color wood-block prints. The color really does add a depth and quality of beauty to the shunga that I have seen. Also there is plenty of explanation on technique and style and a bit of discussion on how the two artists styles vary. A few paragraphs that explain a particular image that may appear to be implying one meaning to our western eyes but is really quite different when taken in the context of the time and culture that created the image is nice too. Overall a great book.
Beautiful, engaging artworks April 19, 2007
4 out of 4 found this review helpful
Klompmakers presents a collection that's distinctive in many ways. First, it presents a large body of work by two Japanese printmakers that aren't as well known as they deserve to be. Though not as popular in the west as Hokusai, Hiroshige, and others, these printmakers certainly approach them in artistic and technical skills. Second, these prints were created as coherent collections. Divisions within this book present the images in the series for which they were created, and in chronological order. The serious student will enjoy seeing stylistic consistencies and developments, as well as seeing the images as context for each other. Thirdly, and not least, I appreciate the book as a physical object. A substantial feel, paper that's glare-free and opaque, full-page reproductions (in most cases), and high-quality printing - it's everything you'd look for in an art book.
The commentary is enjoyable and helpful. And, when I get wrapped up in the imagery itself, I appreciate its conciseness. It's easy to get lost in those pictures, showing couples in a variety of practices and poses, a threesome, men together, and even a group. A few of the scenes depict coercion, but very few. Most feature the humor, affection, grandly magnified organs, and lush furnishings that pervade the genre. Nudity is minimal by western standards, except for clear displays of the point at which the couples are coupled. That makes sense in context, though. Japanese baths made social nudity of mixed groups common - ordinary undress wouldn't be anything special. Instead, imaginations were fired by the elaborate dress of the geishas and rich environment of the pleasure quarters, so those symbols became common in these fantasy prints.
Whether it's the voyeuristic homunculus in Harunobu's Maneemon series or the gentle settings of Koryusai's seasonal studies, there's a lot to like. This isn't as wide-ranging as other collections, but doesn't intend to be. Instead, it presents more focussed studies with somewhat different rewards for the reader. If you're already a fan of Shunga, I recommend this very highly.
//wiredweird
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