Ukiyo-e: Japanese woodblock prints and paintings

Ukiyo-e (浮世絵, lit. pictures of the floating world) are woodblock prints and paintings of a school of artists that emerged in the early part of the Edo period (1603-1868). With the increasing wealth of the merchants and the urban middle classes, ukiyo-e became tremendously popular. The subject matter revolves around the entertainment centres of its patrons, kabuki theatres and pleasure houses, landscapes, and scenes of history and...