Print of a Seated person in a Kimono with elaborate images of houses and palm trees all around the person

Bin-gata | 1975

Sekino Jun-ichiro. Japanese (1914–1988)

Woodblock print in eleven colors on moderately thick, slightly textured, cream paper

Gift of Lucio and Joan Noto

Print of person in a Kimono with a predominant color blue throughout

Geisha by the Sumida River from Popular Customs of the Present Age (Tôsei Fûzoku Konomi) | 1830's

Utagawa Kuniyoshi. Japanese (1797–1861)

Woodcut printed in color on paper

The Margaret Rankin Barker - Isaac Ogden Rankin Collection. Gift of Mr. and Mrs. James Barker (Margaret Clark Rankin, class of 1908)

Geisha by the Sumida River from Popular Customs of the Present Age (Tôsei Fûzoku Konomi) | 1830's

Utagawa Kuniyoshi. Japanese (1797–1861)

Woodcut printed in color on paper

The Margaret Rankin Barker - Isaac Ogden Rankin Collection. Gift of Mr. and Mrs. James Barker (Margaret Clark Rankin, class of 1908)

Geisha by the Sumida River from Popular Customs of the Present Age (Tôsei Fûzoku Konomi) | 1830's.

Utagawa Kuniyoshi. Japanese (1797–1861)

Woodcut printed in color on paper

The Margaret Rankin Barker - Isaac Ogden Rankin Collection. Gift of Mr. and Mrs. James Barker (Margaret Clark Rankin, class of 1908)

Multi color print of two people seated and one person standing on a train

Subway in Spring (Haru no chikatetsu) from the series 100 Views of Great Tokyo in the Showa Era (Showa dai Tokyo hyaku zue) | 1937

Kishio Koizumi. Japanese (1893–1945)

Woodcut printed in color on medium weight cream-colored paper

Gift of Julia Meech, class of 1963, in honor of Samuel C. Morse

Print of Soldiers crossing a bridge over water

Our Army Crosses the Yalu River on the Pontoon Bridge and Drives Back the Enemy Forces to Finally Occupy Jiuliancheng | 1904

Ogata Gessan, 1887–1967

Woodcut printed in color on thin cream colored paper

The Margaret Rankin Barker - Isaac Ogden Rankin Collection. Gift of Mr. and Mrs. James Barker (Margaret Clark Rankin, class of 1908)

Print of a human shaped creature with long hair and clothes on a background of green

Ōtsu-e | Late 19th century

Attributed to Utagawa Yoshiiku. Japanese (1833–1904)

Woodcut printed in color on paper

Bequest of Henry L. Seaver

Beyond the Floating World: Viewing Japanese Prints with Smith Faculty

October 9, 2026–April 4, 2027

Overview

Selected by eight Smith College faculty members, these 35 Japanese woodblock prints invite viewers to consider how works of art can speak across disciplines. Faculty participants came from art history, East Asian studies, History, and Chemistry. Their choices reflect a wide range of personal, scholarly, and teaching perspectives.

Japanese woodblock prints have long been a strength of the SCMA’s Asian art collection. Today, the museum holds more than 700 Japanese prints dating from the 18th through the 21st century. An important resource for teaching and learning, the collection gives faculty and students opportunities to study works of art together through close, firsthand observation, becoming an extension of the classroom.

This installation grew out of a faculty print study day organized by SCMA in 2025. Guided by two specialists in Japanese prints, participants explored the collection and selected works that resonated with their teaching, research, or personal experiences. Their selections offer multiple ways to engage with the prints and demonstrate how close looking can generate new questions, insights, and intersections.