Edo Interior Prints

Beauties Mirrored in the Forms of Flowers - Utagawa Kuniyoshi Japanese Woodblock A Japanese beauty dressed and posed resembling flowers by Utagawa Kumiyoshi (Japan, 1797 - 1861 ). A...

Ishibe, from the series Fifty-three Stations of the Tôkaidô Road (Tôkaidô gojûsan tsugi), also known as the Kyôka Tôkaidô Sanoya Kihei (Kikakudō), c1840. Woodblock print (nishiki-e)...

Dressing Room 53 Stations of Tokaido - Woodblock Utagawa Hiroshige and Kunisada Elegant woodblock print by Utagawa Hiroshige I (Japanese, 1797–1858) and Utagawa Kunisada I...

Charming early 20th Century Japanese woodblock of woman looking at her sleeping Kamuro (little servant) or "Mother and Daughter" by Edo period artist Harunobu Suzuki...

Depiction of a geisha holding origami by Toyohara Kunichika (Japanese, 1835-1900). Presented in a new cream mat with foamcore backing. No frame. Image size: 14"H x 19.5"W Toyohara Kunichika (Japanese 1835-1900) grew up in the Kyobashi district of Edo in the midst of merchants and artisans. Kunichika's work stands in contrast to that of many of his contemporaries as he persistently held onto the traditional style and subject matter of the classic Japanese woodcut, unaffected by new Western forms of art. His love of Kabuki inspired him to depict actors in their various roles and varying facial expressions. His skillful use of color and ability to translate the actor's depth of emotion onto the page makes his work some of the most dramatic ever produced. Later on in his career, Kunichika turned primarily to the triptych format as the increased size gave him the space to fully portray the drama and action of the characters represented. At around the age of eleven Kunichika first studied under the artist (Ichiosai) Toyohara Chikanobu. In 1848, he became an apprentice to the artist Utagawa Kunisada (Toyokuni III, 1786-1865). His first prints as an apprentice were published in the early 1850s. His apprenticeship was formative, as he remained grounded in the Utagawa style he was taught in Kunisada's studio, even after he achieved artistic independence during the mid 1860s-70s. The name Kunichika is a combination of the artist names of his two teachers, Toyohara Chikanobu and Utagawa Kunisada. Following tradition, he assumed the last character, kuni, from Kunisada's artist's name Toyokuni to which he added the character chika from Chikanobu. Kunichika's rise to prominence can be seen in his high ratings from the saikenki (a popular guide that rated ukiyo-e artists), in which he was rated #8 in 1865, #5 in 1867 and #4 in 1885. No other Meiji woodblock...

Intricate Japanese woodblock print triptych of a sumo match between the wrestlers Inazuma and Abumatsu in the the dohyo, or sumo ring, by the popular artist Utagawa Kunisada in the 1840's. Artist Biography: Kunisada was born in 1786 in Honjo, an eastern district of Edo. His given name was Sumida Shōgorō, and he was also called Sumida Shōzō. While growing up, he developed an early talent for painting and drawing. His early sketches at that time impressed Toyokuni, the great master of the Utagawa school and prominent designer of kabuki and actor-portrait prints. In the year 1800 or shortly thereafter Kunisada was accepted by Toyokuni I as an apprentice in his workshop. In keeping with a tradition of Japanese master-apprentice relations, he was then given the official artist name of "KUNI-sada", the first character of which was derived from the second part of the name "Toyo-KUNI". Almost from the first day of his activity, and even at the time of his death in 1865, Kunisada was a trendsetter in the art of the Japanese woodblock print. About 14,500 individual designs have been catalogued (polyptych sets counted as a single design) corresponding to more than 22,500 individual sheets. It seems probable based on these figures that Kunisada actually produced between 20,000 and 25,000 designs for woodblock prints during his lifetime (i.e. 35,000 to 40,000 individual sheets). Following the traditional pattern of the Utagawa school, Kunisada's main occupation was kabuki and actor prints, and about 60% of his designs fall in this category. From 1820 to 1860 he likewise dominated the market for portraits of sumo wrestlers...

Original 19th century Japanese woodblock print. O-Roku stands in a place of luxurious surroundings, a basket of wooden prayer-sticks behind her. She is ...

The Kabuki Actor: Iwai Kumesaburo as the Geisha Otsuma in a Summer Silk Kimono Standing by a Bench. Kiwame seal (1815-1842). Vertical oban. 14 5/8 x 9 3/...