Snow at Edo River, Blue Version – Kawase Hasui Print (1932)

Two women, a bridge, and falling snow

Night is drawing in over the Edo River. Two women, sheltered under their umbrellas, cross a wooden bridge as the snow keeps falling, while the windows of the houses along the bank glow faintly in the dark. Everything here is blue: the water, the sky, the snow itself, in one of Kawase Hasui's most atmospheric winter scenes.

The blue version of a celebrated design

Hasui created Kure no yuki, Edogawa in 1932 for the publisher Doi. The design exists in two distinct colourways: a full-colour version, in which the women's winter coats stand out in warm tones, and this blue version, in which almost the whole image is bathed in deep indigo. The blue treatment recalls the aizuri-e, the blue prints beloved of Edo-period artists, and turns the scene into something close to a nocturne.

A master of snow and night

Kawase Hasui (1883–1957) is the leading landscape artist of the shin-hanga movement, and his snow scenes and night views are his most admired works. Here he combines both, and adds the detail that gives the print its soul: two silhouettes walking away, in the silence of the falling snow.

Why it works so well on a wall

Its deep, enveloping blues make this print a natural choice for a bedroom, a living room or an office in need of calm. It pairs beautifully with pale wood, cream walls, and any interior built around blue tones. Frame it in light oak to soften it, or in black to intensify the night.

• Artist: Kawase Hasui (1883–1957)
• Japanese title: Kure no yuki (Edogawa)
• Date: 1932
• Publisher: Doi
• Original: color woodblock print, vertical ōban format
• Our print: high-quality reproduction on museum-grade matte paper (not an original woodblock print)

Prefer warmer colours? The same scene exists in our full-colour version, Evening Snow at Edo River. Discover more winter scenes in our Kawase Hasui prints collection.