Views of 'Hiroshige: Visions of Japan'

Two hundred years ago, Dutch merchants opened shipments of porcelain from Japan to find the packing material was delicate rice paper, printed with brightly colored scenes of Japanese life. When the prints arrived, it didn't take long for some of the artists behind them to be recognized as masters. Mass-produced from carved woodblocks, the images were known as ukiyo-e.

By Samantha Page, Los Angeles Times

June 6, 2010