The plum orchard in bloom with its white blossoms and red sky is considered Hiroshige's greatest work and a masterpiece of the ???kiyo-e??(floating world) artistic tradition that was popular during the Edo period under the Tokugawa shoguns from 1603 to 1868.

Utagawa, or Ando, Hiroshige was born in Edo (now Tokyo) and was originally a fire warden like his father. He was first inspired by the work of Katsushika Hokusai to become an ukiyo-e artist, and he was mentored by Utagawa Toyohiro, a renowned painter, as an apprentice. In 1812, Hiroshige took his teacher's name (a sign of graduation), signing his work Utagawa Hiroshige. A rendition of The Plum Orchard was later produced by Vincent Van Gogh, though in amber and yellow hues.