Designed for pleasure : the world of Edo Japan in prints and paintings, 1680-1860 /

Many private collections and 11 major museums across the county contributed 141 prints and paintings to an exhibition of the ukiyo-e world of Edo Japan held at the Asia Society, New York, in spring 2008; this brilliant study was published to accompany it. A multitude of monographs and specific theme-focused works on ukiyo-e have been published, but this catalogue places the images directly into the context of revealing the culture and society of Japan during the 180-year period of Edo Japan. The first of eight essays (all by major scholars) traces the history of ukiyo-e studies and collections in the US, summarizes the history of the art, and presents an introduction to the following essays. Even though five essays center on individual masters, they range over such issues as printing technology and publishing, merchandising, and the relationship of artists to their patrons and other members of society. Works of art not illustrated in the individual essays (though they usually are mentioned) are reproduced in a "Works in the Exhibition" section at the end of the catalogue; in both places they carry full curatorial data and often more information. A checklist in Japanese is included. Summing Up: Essential. Lower-level undergraduates and above; general readers. D. K. Haworth emeritus, Carleton College