Join Japanese artist Hiroshige on a lyrical journey through Edo Japan at the British Museum.
If you’re a fan of Japanese prints, then The British Museum’s upcoming exhibition on Utagawa Hiroshige will be one not to miss. From 1st May to 7th September, Hiroshige: artist of the open road will feature the work of Utagawa Hiroshige (1797–1858) in the Joseph Hotung Great Court Gallery. Visitors will be able to join Hiroshige and discover Edo Japan, exploring the natural beauty of landscapes and the bustle of urban life, whilst also considering the artist’s influence on modern and contemporary work.
Born into a humble home during an unsettled time in Japan's history, Utagawa Hiroshige (1797–1858) went on to become one of Japan's most talented, prolific and popular artists. His prints memorialized everyday life in the late Edo period, in which travel and entertainment became more widely available to the middle-class and presented a vision of the country in which the changing of the season and the associated festivities, were central. From stunning flower-and-bird prints showing Hiroshige's poetic feeling for nature to evocative landscapes, Hiroshige possessed remarkable technical skills as a colourist and draftsman. showing a sympathetic regard for people from all walks of life and sensitivity to the rhythms of nature.
The exhibition, which is the first of Hiroshige to be held at the British Museum and the first focused on the artist in London for more than a quarter of a century, will explore Hiroshige’s art and legacy through prints, drawings, illustrated books and paintings from the British Museum collection, along with gifted and loaned prints from a major US collector.
Hiroshige: artist of the open road : 1 May – 7 September 2025
Room 35: The Joseph Hotung Great Court Gallery
The British Museum, Great Russell Street, London, WC1B 3DG
Opening Hours Daily: 10.00–17.00 (Fridays: 20.30)
Further Information: What's on at the British Museum in 2024/25? | British Museum