Yokohama Boomtown MIT

Shinhatsumei: Doitsukoku gunkan naikaku kikai no zu

I selected this image because i find triptychs to be the most interesting form of 2D art. There is also a multitude of detail in this work that is amazing, considering the fact of how this was made. The "stamp" must have taken days to carve, and since it is a triptych the artist Unsen must have had to have carved 3 of them. This also means that they had to be carved and placed with great care to make sure all of the details lined up exactly through each individual print. The artist was known to have the most knowledge on depicting Western ships, and it shows through all of the details he placed inside the ship. The rooms are in the right place (as explained by the MIT article) and each different room is labeled with its purpose in the ship. This image played off of the Japanese interest in Western battle ships, since they had not seen coal and steam driven paddle ships before. This image would be purchased because it gives us a glimpse on how the Japanese viewed the Western (can i call them invaders?) It shows them as a strong, unified power that was prepared for anything. The ammo room is stocked, all of the crew is working hard, and the ship reads like a war ship. People may read the image as pro-Western, so especially Western art lovers would be into this piece. I think it's more pro-Western ships, but it's still an interesting and well thought out print.

Gokakoku ijin Yokohama jōriku no zu

This image is another triptych, which i feel is a common way to produce prints during this time period. The triptych, in general, originated in early Eastern Europe and was usually seen in Churches as altar decoration. While it's not certain how the triptych came over to Japan (the "first" popular triptych maker was active in the mid-1700s,) these ways of depicting Westerners became popular after Perry opened a trading system with Japan. This particular image is interesting because you can see how Yoshikazu viewed the Five Nations. Yoshikazu did not have as good of a grasp on depicting ships as Unsen did, and this can be especially seen on the ship closest to the foreground. Each military group is carrying their country's flag, and there are two Chinese figures in the center portion, who would have been there to help with trade. This image is interesting because a scene like this would have most likely never occurred in Yokohama, so it's largely made up by the artist himself. This piece would probably be purchased because, like the above painting, it shows the view the artist had of the Westerners. It shows all of the people as peaceful, put together groups that are reasonably talking everything out, despite the guns in the army's hands. The guns look as though they're just in formation, rather than ready to attack.

Bankoku jinbutsu no uchi: Amerikajin

This final image is my favorite, mainly because it's of an American couple who only half look American. The woman has a face like many of the bijin-ga we have looked at, and only the man's face looks slightly different than the typical ukiyo-e male face. The clothing is also interesting, because the woman's top looks like it could be chinese,The dress is pretty standard for a woman of this time period, but the male's outfit is a little strange. He is wearing a military jacket and carrying a sword, but wearing a hat and shoes that would not be part of a military uniform. He is also smoking a cigarette, which was not common during this time in Japan. This all shows that the artist had little interaction with Western clothing, and filled in the blanks that he didn't know with other forms of clothing. I think this piece is very novel and would be bought for the fact that it is novel. I think many art junkies, especially American ones, would love to have a piece depicting their county from this time period.