46 AMAM.OBERLIN.EDU Suzuki Harunobu 鈴木春信 (Japanese, 1725–1770) AutumnMoon at Ishiyama, from Eight Views of Ōmi, mid-1760s Woodblock print (benizuri-e); ink and limited color on paper MaryA. AinsworthBequest, 1950.231 Travelers arrive at a temple by boat and make their way to the gate in the foreground. The main hall and a pagoda are further inside the grounds, on a raised hill emerging frommist. The red color of the temple buildings is mirrored in the red leaves, a symbol of autumn. This rare early print by Harunobu uses a very limited color selection and was made before his pioneering use of full-color printing in the 1760s. The scene shows Ishiyama temple, a site traditionally associated with Murasaki Shikibu, the author of the influential 11th-century novel The Tale of Genji. Harunobu’s depiction of the site appears more imagined than realistic. The accompanying poem references settings associated with exile in the Tale of Genji and emphasizes a connection with distant friends or lovers—all see the same moon. The poem is translated above. Ishiyama! the moonlight that shines on the Bay of Niho is none other than that at both Suma and Akashi! —Translation by Joshua S. Mostow, Masterful Illusions: Japanese Prints in the Anne Van Biema Collection (2002)
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