Utagawa Hiroshige (1797-1858) | Plum Estate, Kameido (Kameido umeyashiki) | Edo period, 19th century

The heady fragrance of plum blossoms lingers over the branches of the Sleeping Dragon Plum (Garyubai). Situating the composition within the confines of the famed plum blossom tree, Hiroshige depicts an otherwise unpermitted close-up sight of the new blossoms closed off to the general public. One of the most famous trees in the capital of Edo, the large, sprawling manner of its low bearing branches were seen to be akin to a dormant dragon coiled in sleep. The corner of a wooden signboard is just visible to the upper left, potentially denoting the name of the tree or warning against vandalism. Through the network of branches and further plum trees to the distance, figures can be seen enjoying the early spring bloom.

The use of exaggerated single-point perspective, where the objects closest in view are increased in size, as well as the close-cropping of the composition, viscerally evoke the almost palpable aroma of plum. The striking design is intensified by the emboldened and almost abstract appearance of the branches dominating the foreground, sometimes linked to the cursive brushstrokes of Japanese calligraphy.

After Japan opened its borders in 1858, Hiroshige’s prints soon saw popularity amongst the Impressionists in Europe. The artist Vincent van Gogh (1853-1890) was a collector of Japanese prints and greatly admired Hiroshige. His fascination with the artist culminated in two oil on canvas renderings based on two of Hiroshige’s prints from the One Hundred Views of Edo series: Plum Estate, Kameido and Sudden Shower over Shin-Ohashi Bridge and Atake. Flowering Plum Orchard (after Hiroshige) was executed exactly thirty years after the original work was published, and embellishes the original design with a border ornamented with decorative kanji characters. For van Gogh, Japan occupied a utopian place within his imagination; it was the land depicted in woodblock prints unmarked by shadows and radiant with light and colour. The unfettered palette such as the stylistic red sky, bold outlines, as well as the cropped and strong diagonal compositional elements present in Plum Estate, Kameido were undoubtedly representative of the idealised vision of Japan van Gogh harboured.

For the oil on canvas in the collection of the van Gogh Museum, Amsterdam, object number s0115V1962, go to:

https://www.vangoghmuseum.nl/en/collection/s0115V1962

And, for a tracing of the original print by van Gogh in van Gogh Museum, Amsterdam, object number d0772V1962, go to:

https://www.vangoghmuseum.nl/en/collection/d0772V1962

The impression of Plum Estate, Kameido that inspired van Gogh to create this work is also in the collection of the van Gogh Museum, Amsterdam, object number n0077V1962, go to:

https://www.vangoghmuseum.nl/en/japanese-prints/collection/n0077V1962

The same print is in numerous museum collections, including The British Museum, museum number 1948,0410,0.65, the Museum of Fine Arts, Boston, accession number 11.35818, and the Tokyo National Museum, object number A-10569_7318.