Cherry Blossoms in Ueno Toshogo
A depiction of a Tōshō-gū Shrine in the Ueno park in Tokyo. The Shrine is a Shinto Shrine and is otherwise called Kiyomizudo, or the Ueno Temple.
By University of Alberta Museums
Kasamatsu Shiro
Cherry Blossoms in Ueno Toshogo (c. 1935) by Kasamatsu ShiroUniversity of Alberta Museums
Artist Kasamatsu Shiro (1898-1991) showers us with an abundance of springtime blossoms. The cherry blossom, or sakura, is the emblematic flower of spring in Japan and a symbol of renewal and the fleeting nature of life.
Just visible behind the screen of blossoms is the red, five-storied pagoda of Kaneiji Temple, a Buddhist temple complex built in 1625 in Tokyo.
In the foreground are three traditional stone toro lanterns. These small glimpses of sturdy building and lanterns provide a contrast to the delicate pink flowers and exaggerate their abundance within the borders of the print.
These Shin-hanga prints from the first half of the twentieth century were highly commercial, depicting picturesque landscapes, beautiful women in kimono and nature scenes; images that often appealed to Western buyers.
Erina Takada, “Significance of Sakura: Cherry Blossom Traditions in Japan,” Smithsonian Folklife Festival, https://festival.si.edu/blog/2014/significance-of-sakura-cherry-blossom-traditions-in-japan accessed May 2, 2023.
Ellis Tinios, “Modern Japanese Prints - Shin Hanga,” Print Quarterly, 33, No. 1 (2016): 75.
