Posted by Dan (24.58.6.220) on September 20, 2004 at 18:31:15:
In Reply to: Re: Original Formats of Ukiyo-e posted by Arnold on September 20, 2004 at 00:50:43:
Hi Arnold,
Your post brings up a good point, which is the variety of prints and purposes they served.
I think I was hasty in saying prints were somewhat equivalent to modern posters, though this was of course the case for some prints (actor prints spring to mind.)
The hashira-e does in fact seem to have been made as what Akai would call a "painting replacement" or "art for the common people" and though I think he's hasty in saying that ukiyo-e prints in general were made for this purpose, it is true of some kinds of prints. In this case the hashira-e would take the place of a more expensive hanging painting in the alcove.
So while I don't think mounting was the general practice for ukiyo-e, it may well have been for the hashira-e and vertical diptych. It's interesting to consider too if the hanging prints within designs by Harunobu were direct reflections of reality or indirect marketing (suggesting that ukiyo-e prints are important enough to hang in the alcove).