Japanese Popular Prints: From Votive Slips to Playing Cards

In the West, we tend to associate Japanese prints with the ukiyo-e tradition—prints based on the aristocracy, cultural heroes, actors, and the beautiful people of the time. These prints were (and are) considered to be fine art, using the highest quality of materials and immense time and skill. But behind the scenes, Japanese printmakers in the major cities were also catering for a working class culture, using intense speed and poor quality materials to create beautiful multicolored decorative papers, votive name cards, games, playing cards, gift envelopes, and paper screens. In this book, Rebecca Salter explores this tradition and also the work that is still being done today in this field. The result is a fascinating look at an exciting and beautiful art form.