Tokubei Ando (1842-1894) Known As Hiroshige III, Toothpick Seller In Aki Province

Tokubei ANDO (1842-1894) known as HIROSHIGE III 三代目 歌川広重
Province of Aki, Toothpick seller in Itsukushima
Japanese print from the collection Products of Greater Japan 大日本物産圖會, Occupations of the Japanese だいにっぽんぶっさんずえ Dai Nippon bussan zue
1877
Laid paper
Signed lower right in the plate
Tokyo
Publisher: Ōkura Magobei 大倉孫兵衛

Dimensions: 24.8 x 17.8cm (Chūban)

Superb Japanese print with bright colors and motifs typical of the work of Hiroshige III depicting a scene of daily life in Aki Prefecture around 1870 in Japan. Note the very subtle bamboo-effect frame, which showcases the master's virtuosity in representing textures and materials. The print is beautifully fresh with well-defined details; the only minor flaws are a slightly creased lower right corner and some soiling in the side margins.
Nice treatment of the gradients in the sky and water using Bokashi, a technique specific to the great Japanese Ukiyo-e workshops.

Our print depicts the sale of souvenir toothpicks at Itsukushima Shrine on Miyajima Island in Aki Prefecture. It offers a view from one of the "floating" buildings (the Haraiden Purification Pavilion of the Marōdo Auxiliary Shrine) of Itsukushima Shrine. According to the Miyajima Tourism Association: "The shrine was an iconic Miyajima landmark where many people came to relax, refresh themselves, and buy popular souvenirs such as toothpicks; many legends and traditions developed there."

It's worth noting that, in addition to the souvenirs and refreshments the place can offer, we can see in this image that passersby enjoy the company of wild animals that nevertheless appear tame, with amusing scenes involving monkeys and deer against a seaside backdrop. Aki Province (安芸国 Aki no kuni) or Geishū (芸州) was a province in the Chūgoku region of western Honshū, encompassing the western part of present-day Hiroshima Prefecture. At the end of the Heian period (12^th century), Aki Province gained great renown thanks to Itsukushima Shrine."
Taira no Kiyomori, aware of the shrine's importance, financed the construction of a new complex of buildings and sutra scrolls.


Utagawa Hiroshige III (三代目 歌川 広重) was a 19^th-century Japanese painter. Born in 1842 and dying relatively young in 1894, his origins are unknown, and a family connection with Hiroshige Andō and Hiroshige II is highly unlikely. He was not part of the Utagawa school and never used that name. A master of printmaking, disciple and successor of Hiroshige Andō, he took over his master's workshop in 1865. He was, in fact, part of the last generation of ukiyo-e artists, along with Hōen, Kuniteru, Sahahide, and Kunisada II, whose works were chosen by the shogunal government to be exhibited at the 1867 Universal Exposition in Paris.

These works—the famous Japanese prints—were sold locally after the exposition and thus contributed to the first wave of Japonisme in Europe, which was sparked by this event. Like his contemporaries, Hiroshige III enjoyed depicting the innovations of his time with aniline dyes in very pronounced tones. He was very interested in railways (one of the first lines built in Japan connected Tokyo to Yokohama), and in the foreigners who settled in Yokohama from 1868 onwards, and he enjoyed depicting them at leisure, particularly in restaurants.

A valuable document held at the Tokyo National Library and recently made available to scholars is significant: the official records relating to one hundred prints commissioned by the shogunal government for the 1867 Paris Exposition. Fifty of these prints, collected in two albums, depict female figures in various professions, intended to illustrate Japanese customs, while the other half consists of landscapes, primarily views of Edo.

The artists who shared this official commission, chosen from among the best of the time, all belonged to the last generation of ukiyo-e printmakers, including Hiroshige III, who created the collection from which our print is taken for this occasion.