Woodblock printmaking was the first Japanese art that made its way abroad. A complicated form, the finished work involves the collaboration of different artisans—artist, carver, printer, publisher. The artist sketches an original design; it is transferred onto a cherry-wood block; color separation requires etching onto multiple blocks; then ink must be applied meticulously, using brushes. The striking native landscapes created by such 19th-century artists as Utagawa Hiroshige and Katsushika Hokusai helped Westerners picture the Far East. Drawing on the Whitworth’s archive of these woodblocks, this show explores how artists such as Hokusai and Hiroshige shaped our vision of Japan, from anime to manga. —Elena Clavarino