In spite of the shortage of land in Japan, sixty percent of the main island of Japan, Honshu, is covered with forests; this is due to the nature of the terrain, which makes it unsuited for most commercial uses. The Japanese Alps, the spine of the island, consist of three ranges: Southern, Northern, and Central. Many of the forested areas are accessible to tourists, and hiking tours can be arranged.

In this print, the hiker is wearing a traditional straw hat, but his outfit is updated with shorts and modern footwear.

He was born in Tokyo, and starting at the age of nine, trained in traditional Japanese painting by his uncle. As a young man, he worked for the Imperial Household Department, copying ceremonial designs; he also illustrated magazines, textbooks, and scientific articles.

From 1907 on he designed prints for Watanabe's woodblock print business. Most of his designs show scenic Japanese landscapes, in a style derived from the classics of ukiyo-e. Although they proved popular with Western customers, Watanabe wanted to publish prints in a more modern style, and he moved on to pursue collaborations with other artists.

Like other shin hanga artists, the Great Kanto Earthquake of 1923 wiped out Takahashi's life's work, both blocks and prints in stock (he had produced a total of about 500 designs by then). He went on to create about almost 250 prints after the disaster, many of them greeting cards and small landscapes.

One common story has it that Hiroaki had the misfortune to be visiting his daughter in Hiroshima when the atomic bomb was dropped on the city, but this appears to be incorrect; a 1966 catalog from his publisher, Watanabe, records that he died in April of 1945, months beforehand. Other sources agree that he died in the spring, of natural causes.

As a student, he studied design and Japanese-style painting; his first job was designing fabrics for a department story in Yokohama. He became interested in woodblock prints through a friendship with Kawase Hasui, and in 1930 he adopted the gō Koitsu and devoted himself to prints. He initially worked for Watanabe, but his dedication to genre scenes, and his unwillingness to produce the romantic landscapes and classic landmarks which were then in demand among Watanabe's foreign customers, led to a parting of the ways in 1935.

His background as a designer of fabrics showed through when he designed stencils which were used in the production of some of his print, a technique which had previously only been used on rare occasions in the previous century.

Lake Kawaguchi, directly to the North of Mt. Fuji, is now perhaps the most popular with tourists; the tourist infrastructure there also serves as a base for those who wish to climb Mt. Fuji.

In this print Koitsu has created a peaceful print through the use of delicate lines and pastel inks, somewhat different from his usual style, lending a bit of surprise and colorful accent with the yellow boat on the lake.

In this image, the famous marine main torii (ceremonial gate) at Miyajima is not prominent, and instead we see more of the main temple buildings, which are almost entirely built out over the water on pilings. The temple is over 800 years old, so it is no longer known with certainty why this unusual location was picked.

One possibility relates to the prevalent Buddhist teaching (during the Fujiwara period, when the current temple was built, although there has been a temple there for much longer); it was believed that when people died, their soul crossed over by boats to the Buddhist paradise of the "Pure Land". Another, drawing on the fact that the enshrined goddess is the goddess of the sea, is that this was an attempt to build her mythical "Dragon Palace".

The location and wooden construction means that upkeep of the temple is a major undertaking, due to weather damage and also decay of the pilings. However, it provides a spectacular setting, especially at night when one can see the moon reflected in the water, as here.

There is a torii at the entrance to every Shinto shrine; they almost always have a a cross-piece just below the top which connects the posts, and a longer one above which juts out. One theory behind its origin is that it is related to the ancient Shinto practice of tying sacred objects together with a straw rope; a rope between two posts marking a sacred site may in time have been replaced by a log, the whole later becoming a proper gate.

Kofuku-ji's five-storied pagoda has become a symbol of Nara, and is the second highest pagoda in Japan at about 150 feet tall. It is the sixth pagoda on this spot, after the first, built in 725; the others were all destroyed by fire over the temple's history. The current pagoda was rebuilt in 1426, and survives today only through the oddest of quirks: at the time of the Meiji Restoration, in the rush to modernise and discard the past, many monuments were destined for destruction. It was planned to burn the pagoda for the few thousand nails which could be retrieved from the ashes, but it was temporarily spared - not for historical reasons, but for fear the fire might get out of control. Luckily, the reprieve was long enough to allow reconsideration of its true value.

In this print, the pagoda's image is reflected in the calm waters of Sarusawa-no-ike Pond.

Lake Saiko (literally, "West Lake") is another one of the Fuji Five Lakes, located to the North of Mt. Fuji at its base. It is the smallest of the four large lakes, and the area around it is the least developed, perhaps because from much of it, the view of Mount Fuji is partially blocked by other mountains.

It is connected to two of the other lakes, Lake Shoji and Lake Motosu, by underground waterways, so that the surface levels of the water in all three always match.

In this print, Koitsu has used a rather unorthodox colour scheme in an attempt to capture the feeling of the sunset; notice especially the subtle gradation of the inks in the bokashi (shading); the printer has done an excellent job of blending the colours.

Its history goes back to the early 15th century, when Ushigome Castle was built; the town itself was built in the first half of the 17th century, and the main street took the form it still has today. At the time of the Meiji Restoration, Kagurazaka started to become a commerical district for Tokyo, It also became an entertainment center, including such activities as yose (humour, magic, musical entertainment, etc.), enbujo (traditional dancing theater), and karyukai, which was born in there.

In this image, one can see that at the time Kagurazaka had changed little (by now it is much more built up, although it still has some of its old character). It was lit with electricity, although originally Chinese paper lanterns were used to light the way. A candle would have been lit inside a cube, or other rice paper shape, the transparency of the paper allowing the candle to create an outward glow. The original cubes were designed to fold flat for easy storage or transport, and lettering on the lanterns often identified a business or restaurant.

Ironically, this seemingly so-Japanese print is in fact almost a direct copy of a very similar print with the same title, produced by Noel Nouet, a French artist living in Japan, which was created 2 years before Koitsu's.

Usho (handlers) train the birds, and tug on leashes to send up to a dozen birds at a time after fish. Each ubune (boat) contains of a crew of three men, each with up to a dozen birds. The kagaribi (fire that provides light for the cormorant) is provided by burning pine branches, or a kagari (iron pot) containing a fire. The birds are kept on short leashes, so that they remain within the circle of light. There are rings around the base of the birds' necks, so that they cannot swallow the fish; they bring them back to the boat, and the fishermen reward them with fish chunks which are cut small enough for the birds to swallow.

In this print, Koitsu has closely copied an earlier print by Kawase Hasui, "Misty Moonlight at Miyajima", from 1921. Note the dim outline of the deer in the foreground; this was also copied from the Hasui original.

It is famous throughout Japan as the home of the highest quality unagi (freshwater eels); as a result, the lake has many small restaurants specializing in various eel dishes.

Although Hasui is most famed for his snowscapes; this print shows off in an intense way another of the attributes for which he was famous, which was the amazing luminous quality which he managed to imbue many of his prints with.

Although many of Hasui's prints are still being produced from the original blocks (the publisher, Watanabe, has become expert at extending the life of printing blocks with careful care), no recent copies of this print are known. Watanabe has indicated that during World War II many of their blocks (which had been stored at a variety of locations for security) were destroyed, so perhaps this was one of them.

This print, "Snow at Mukojima", was originally produced in 1931, in the early middle of his career, and is one of his more famous snowscenes in "classic" style. It shows the evening tail end of a snow fall on the boatyard at Mukojima, and is generally regarded as one of Hasui's most successful atmospheric prints.

As is usual with Hasui's prints (as with most of Hiroshige's landscapes), the human figures are utterly peripheral to the design; minor elements even less worthy of notice than elements like the lighted window.

The publishing house of Watanabe has brought the technique of keeping the carved blocks productive for long print runs to what may be a new high, enhancing the longevity of block sets by treating them carefully. This particular print is a wonderful illustration of that; although the blocks were carved in 1931, the small red Heisei seal (Heisei is the nengo (reign name) of the current emperor, Akihito) in the lower right-hand margin indicates that this particular copy dates from the 1990's, after Akihito's accession in 1989.

It was founded in 798, but as is common with Japanese wooden buildings, it burned down on a number of occasions, most recently in 1629; it was rebuilt in 1633. The temple takes its name from the waterfall within the complex; kiyomizu literally means "pure water".

Situated on the side of a steep hill above Kyoto to the East of the city, the large main veranda is supported by a structure of latticed wood, using 139 support pillars. The veranda is the origin of the popular Japanese expression "to jump off the stage at Kiyomizu", the equivalent of the English "to take the plunge". An Edo Period tradition held that if one survived the approximately 40 foot jump from the veranda, one's wish would be granted. Although the practice is now prohibited, in the Edo Period 234 jumps were recorded; of those, 85% survived, since the lush vegetation below the platform did cushion the fall.

A central episode in the tale, and of later plays (such as Fuwa Benkei, Benkei in the Boat) centered on Daimotsu Bay; after Yoshitsune's decisive victory over the Taira clan at the sea battle of Dan-no-ura in 1185, his brother Yoritomo, the first Kamakura Shogun, outlawed him, and he was forced to flee, along with his followers. Setting sail, they were caught in an unusually violent storm in Daimotsu Bay, and heard the spirit voices of the dead Taira warriors calling for revenge; the spirits were only quelled when Benkei confronted them with prayers and spells while standing on the bow of his boat.

However, there is now little opportunity to experience the bay as it looked back then, as it is now part of the harbour district of the Hanshin industrial belt.

Hasui has captured this 'new Japan' brilliantly in this print, which does not capture the old, rural Japan, but rather the blossoming industrial Japan of his day - even though even in this print we still get the feeling of a Japanese setting, rather than an 'industrial modern' scene that could belong to any country.

In 1939, at the invitation of the Railway Bureau of Korea, Hasui, along with several other artists, made a trip to Korea, which was then still under Japanese occupation. He produced two series of Korean views from this, of which this print comes from the second.

Hasui had developed this technique very early in his career, and it was first seen in "Evening Snow at Sanjukkenbori", from 1920. One shin hanga catalog records that at the time, no blocks had ever been carved to produce such an effect, but Hasui had enough knowledge of the technique of block-carving to think it was possible, and Watanabe's master block-carvers managed to pull it off.

Hasui experimented with this technique in portraying intense rainfall as well, but it was not very successful in that application. He produced quite a few prints of snow scenes with it, though, of which this is one of the most successful.

Hasui was fond of Hataori, and often vacationed there. He was evacuated there during the Second World War, which was fortunate, as his house in Tokyo was destroyed in an air raid.

In 1860, it was the scene of an assassination with major consequences; a high official of the Shogunate, Ii Naosuke, was killed there by a group of 18 samurai who opposed the policy of the Shogunate, and who blamed him for signing trade treaties with foreign powers. His murder was the beginning of the end for the Tokugawa Shogunate.

Ironically, in 1932, it was also the site of an unsuccessful assassination attempt, also with major consequences, on the Emperor Showa (Hirohito, 1901-1989) by members of a right-wing military group. Although their attempted coup failed, in the aftermath the military gained increasing control over the Japanese government, leading eventually to Japan's involvement, and destruction, in World War II.

There are a number of Tama rivers in Japan, of which this one is the most significant; it rises in the Chichubu mountains, and flows Eastward into Tokyo Bay. A made-made reservoir lake along its course supplied Edo with drinking water through a man-made canal 50 kilometers long, dug in 1654; it was only finally abandoned in 1965.

The six rivers of the same name in different provinces (Settsu, Yamato, Yamashiro, Musashi, Kii and Mutsu) furnished a favourite theme for landscape artists of a previous era, in part because the word tama also means "jewel", an important symbol in Buddhism. Both Hokusai and Hiroshige produced series on this theme. As with other classic landscape sets, such as the 'Eight Views of Omi', each river had a particular theme for its portrayal.

Boshu seems to be in Awa province, on the tip of the Chiba peninsula, which forms the Eastern side of Tokyo bay.

Himeji-jo, not far to the West of Osaka, is the largest castle building (tenshu) remaining in Japan; being built of wood, many tenshu have fallen victim to fire over the years. Several (such as Nagoya) were lost during the Second World War, while some of the most spectacular ones fell victim to accidental fires, including the massive one at Edo (Tokyo) built by Tokugawa Ieyasu (founder of the Tokugawa Shogunate), which was destroyed by the great fire which devastated Edo in 1657.

In this print we see Japan's premier mountain and national symbol, Mt. Fuji, from Funatsu, which today, as then, is a center for tourism in the Fuji region, with lodging for visitors.

Note the lack of a pencil signature, even though it bears a jizuri seal; this print was probably produced for the Japanese market.

A kura is, literally, an old Japanese farm storehouse; it is used here more generally to mean "warehouse".

This particular location, the Lake Palace on the artificial lake in Udaipur, now an exclusive hotel, may be familiar to aficionados of James Bond movies; it was used in the Bond movie "Octopussy" as the headquarters of the female lead character.

Toshi Yoshida is the son of the noted shin hanga artist Hiroshi Yoshida. In addition to helping his father with the production of his prints, he also became a woodblock artist of some note in his own right. Born into an artistic environment (his grandfather was also a woodblock artist), he showed signs of artistic promise at a very early age. As a young man, he traveled widely in both the East and West, seeking new subject material. While touring, he also did much to spread knowledge of the Japanese woodblock print.

The Buddhist Jodo-Shinsu ('True Pure Land') sect was founded in 1224, and is today one of the two most populous Shin Buddhist sects, with approximately 5 million members. The sect was unique in its belief in the Amida Buddha, grantor of salvation, as well as its rejection of celibacy.

The temple whose main gate is shown in this print was founded in 1602, and was rebuilt several times, most recently in 1895, after a fire burned down the previous one. Its main hall is Kyoto's largest wooden structure. The great two-story gate, Daishido-mon, built in 1911. opens to Daishi-do (Founder's Hall), with its massive wooden columns This section is now open to the public.