Historical Context
The Tokugawa Shogunate imposed a strict social hierarchy on Japan during the Edo (1603-1867) period. This well-defined system of social status meant that merchants, members of the wealthiest class, were excluded from serving in government positions.
Combined with a period of peace and prosperity, this exclusion from the expensive task of governing left the merchant class with an excess of capital. The merchants used their disposable income to patronize the arts: printers, artists, actors of the Kabuki theatres, as well as courtesans, were paid for their services.
The merchant lifestyle, with its celebration of pleasure, beauty, and sensuality, became known as Ukiyo or "the floating world." Pictures of the floating world, or Ukiyo-e, were often included in travel books, works on popular Kabuki actors, artist copy-books, books of Kimono and Ikebana (flower arranging) patterns, and picture books.
In 1868, Japan underwent major political and social upheaval. After the abdication of the last Tokugawa Shogun and the restoration of the Meiji Emperor, the West was finally allowed access to a nation that had sealed its borders to outside influences for many years. Western traders brought back to Europe scores of wood-block prints and Japanese artists' books, and many western artists and intellectuals visited Japan.
These works created a surge of interest in Japanese aesthetics in Europe and America, inspiring many artists, particularly the Impressionists, to mimic their bold lines and dramatic use of form.