Travel on the road of Kisokaidō. From Hiroshige to Kuniyoshi

This exhibition is extended until August 8, 2021

Travel on the road of Kisokaidō. From Hiroshige to Kuniyoshi will be the first exhibition offered by the Cernuschi Museum after its reopening following a 9-month renovation project. From October 16, it will bring together a unique set of nearly 150 Japanese prints, some of which will be unveiled to the public for the first time. Through a course punctuated by the various relays on the Kisokaidō road, a choice of remarkable objects will echo the engravings on display: armor, calligraphy boxes, katana, battle saddle or even picnic kits will be presented.

The exhibition will take you through one of Japan's most legendary roads in pictures: the Kisokaidō, which was one of the five lanes of the road network created in Japan during the Tokugawa period (1603-1868). It linked Edo (now Tokyo), where the shogun had his residence, to Kyōto, seat of the emperor. Unlike the Tōkaidō road, which joined the ancient capital in fifty-three stints along the coast, the Kisokaidō, marked out with sixty-nine stages, crossed the mountainous interior. It followed a longer and very spectacular route, sometimes more scenic and arduous due to the presence of nine steep passes.
Between 1835 and 1838 the Kisokaidō was the subject of a series of prints made by Eisen (1790-1848) and Hiroshige
(1797-1858), whose success was considerable. Two other series were born under the brush of Kunisada (1786-1865)
and Kuniyoshi (1797-1861).
They constitute the two main parts of the exhibition route.

COMMISSIONER:
Manuela Moscatiello, head of the Japanese collections of the Cernuschi PARIS MUSEUMS