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Kikugawa EizanNarihira's Journey to the East - Japanese Woodblock on Paper by Kikugawa Eizan19th C
19th C
About the Item
Narihira's Journey to the East - Japanese Woodblock on Paper
Original 19th century Japanese woodcut print depicting Narihira's journey to the East by a follower of Utamaru,
Kikugawa Eizan (Japan, 1787-1867). It is rare to find a complete triptych in good condition as this one. Below Mt Fujiyama the procession travels on their journey. Narihira himself, was represented as a pretty girl showing off her fine clothes.
Eizan Kikukawa “Todai Azuma Kudari”
Horse Museum Collection
菊川英山「当世吾妻下り」
馬の博物館所蔵
Kikukawa eizan `tōsei Adzuma kudari'-ba no hakubutsukan shozō
Presented in a black mat.
Mat: 24"H x 36"W
Image: 14.5"H x 29.5"W
Kikugawa Eizan, born in 1787 as Toshinobu Omiya, passed away in 1867. While not a direct pupil of Kitagawa Utamaro, he began his artistic journey under the tutelage of his father, Kikugawa Eiji, a Kano style painter and fan maker. Later, Eizan further honed his skills studying with Shijo artist Suzuki Nanrei and the Hokusai pupil Hokkei Totoya.
Kikugawa Eizan Biography:
Although Kikugawa Eizan appears to have retired from printmaking in the late 1820s, he continued contributing illustrations for books, even in the latter years of his life. His passing occurred in 1867.
Often categorized alongside Kikumaro, Tsukimaro, and Utamaro II, Eizan has faced criticism from connoisseurs who label him as a plagiarist of Utamaro's late style. However, Eizan's body of work showcases a developmental journey typical of ukiyo-e artists, transitioning from a close association with a master to achieving studied independence. His portfolio includes pieces of remarkable beauty and interest.
Bijin-ga in the Footsteps of Utamaro
In the subsequent decade, as Eizan reached artistic maturity, he embarked on the development of his distinctive figural style, primarily centered around prints featuring beautiful women (bijin-ga). While Eizan's work maintains the sensitivities and lyricism reminiscent of the Utamaro style, it diverges from the earthier realism and more overt sensuality seen in the bijin prints of Kunisada and Ikeda Eisen.
The ninth chapter in The Tales of Ise is the most famous passage of the text and one of the most frequently illustrated in Japanese literature. Narihira has lost all will to continue his worldly life in the capital and, in a disconsolate mood, leaves home with one or two close friends in search of a peaceful existence in the eastern provinces. Illustrators most often represented the moment during this Azuma kudari, or journey to the east, when the dispirited travelers pass the foot of Mount Fuji. Supposedly, that is the subject of the triptych here, but the artist had no qualms whatsoever about abandoning the loneliness and disillusionment of the journey described in The Tales of Ise. In this mitate, or contemporary parody of classical subjects, the poetic description of the small, gloomy group of travelers is used as an excuse to mount a glamorous pageant of beautiful Edo-period women wearing the finest contemporary fashions. So unconcerned was the artist with the faithful rendition of the text that even the romantic hero, Narihira himself, was represented as a pretty girl showing off her fine clothes.
- Creator:Kikugawa Eizan (1787 - 1867, Japanese)
- Creation Year:19th C
- Dimensions:Height: 24 in (60.96 cm)Width: 36 in (91.44 cm)Depth: 0.5 in (1.27 cm)
- Medium:
- Movement & Style:
- Period:
- Condition:Very good condition. Some age toning to paper consistent with age.
- Gallery Location:Soquel, CA
- Reference Number:
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