What do late 18th- to 19th-century Edo (present-day Tokyo) and late 19th-century Paris have in common? This exhibition, which can only be seen in Seattle, uncovers the shared renegade spirit that characterized the graphic arts and social cultures of these two dynamic cities. On view are over 90 Japanese ukiyo-e woodblock prints and paintings from SAM’s Japanese collection alongside private loans of works by Henri de Toulouse-Lautrec (1864–1901).
In addition to the intriguing formal and thematic parallels between these two collections of graphic arts, the exhibition reveals the social impulses behind their burgeoning art production. As both cities faced challenges to the status quo from the rising middle classes, subversive impulses gave rise to vibrant cultures of theatregoing, pleasure seeking, and new forms of visual art.
