Flowers of a Hundred Worlds (Momoyogusa), vols. 1–3

Kamisaka Sekka (Japanese, 1866–1942)

1909–10

Medium
set of three woodblock printed folding-books; ink, color, gold, and silver on paper
Classification
Bound Volume
Dimensions
Sheet: 29.9 x 22.1 cm (11 3/4 x 8 11/16 in.)
Culture
Japan, Meiji period (1868–1912)
Museum
Cleveland Museum of Art, Japanese Art
Credit line
Norman O. Stone and Ella A. Stone Memorial Fund
Rights
Public domain (CC0), as the museum states it.
Who can see it
Little Ones profiles and older: it shows gentle subjects for the very young. How works are placed

View at the Cleveland Museum of Art

About this work

This set of three woodblock printed folding-books displays the graphic design prowess of Kamisaka Sekka. The images were first distributed one by one to subscribers to the series but later were reissued in bound form, like these books, for mass consumers. Each print features a vignette taken from nature or Japanese literature. Many of the scenes have a long history in Japan, originating in the 900s or 1000s and having been interpreted by all manner of artists since that time. Sekka’s selections hew closely to precedents from the Rinpa style originated by painter Tawaraya Sōtatsu (c. 1570–c. 1640) and calligrapher Hon’ami Kōetsu (1558–1637).