Yoshu Chikanobu

A Group of Six Bust Portraits of Beauties - Jidai Kagami (Mirror of the Ages).

1896

CHIKANOBU, Yoshu (1838–1912) A Set of Six Bust Portraits of Beauties - Jidai Kagami (Mirror of the Ages). 1896-1898 A Set of Six oban tate-e woodblock prints of okubi-e (bust portraits) of beauties, titled Jidai kagami (Mirror of the Ages), documenting the fashions of former times (from the Keicho to the Meiji era) in chronological order, each sheet with a beautiful woman in sumptuous costume depicted at the lower section and a rectangular panel at the top which makes a reference to the era, some sheets with lacquer and embossed details, published by Matsuki Heikichi, variously dated Meiji 29, 30 and 31 (1896-8), all signed Yoshu Chikanobu. Each sheet approx. 36 x 23.7 cm (14 1/8 x 9 3/8 in). oyohara Chikanobu (1838–1912), better known to his contemporaries as Yōshū Chikanobu, was one of the most successful woodblock print artists of Japan's Meiji period. He lived at a time when Japan saw the reinstatement of the emperor as ruler and underwent rapid westernization. He worked both with traditional subjects, such as actors, courtesans, scenes of famous sites, beautiful women, and with topical subjects, such as the Satsuma Rebellion (1877) and the Sino-Japanese War (1894-1895). Chikanobu used the flat planes and decorative patterning of the ukiyo-e tradition to striking effect, adding brilliant colors, especially reds, purples, and blues to his compositions. More precisely, Ukiyo-e, or ukiyo-ye (in Japanese: "pictures of the floating world"), is a genre of woodblock prints and paintings that flourished in Japan from the 17th through 19th centuries. It was aimed at the prosperous merchant class in the urbanizing Edo period (1603–1867). Amongst the popular themes were depictions of beautiful women, as is the case here with these okubi-e prints (i.e. bust portraits); kabuki actors and sumo wrestlers; scenes from history and folk tales; travel scenes and landscapes; flora and fauna; and erotica. One of Chikanobu’s best series, A Mirror of the Ages shows women by fashion and hair style throughout history. Despite a sense of longing for the past, these prints are unmistakably modern and of their time. Each print depicts a beauty from a certain period in the lower part and customs at that time, in grisaille, in the upper part - a way to tell viewers about the latest fashion and historical backgroud at that time. The quality of printing is outstanding, especially in Chikanobu’s use of white for the rendering of the powdered faces. Indeed, Chikanobu was known as a master of bijinga (images of beautiful women), and for illustrating changes in women's fashion, including both traditional and Western clothing...

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