Beauty with Cat, By Isoda Koryusai, Edo period, 18th century
Japanese Gallery (Honkan) Room 10
May 20, 2014 (Tue) - June 15, 2014 (Sun)
In the early Edo period (1603–1868), ukiyo-e, which are depictions of commoners’ lives in the Edo period, were only in the form of paintings. Later on, a method of woodblock printing was devised and mass production of ukiyo-e became possible. Eventually, a method of producing multicolored nishiki-e prints was established, following the further development of carving and printing techniques. Based on subjects popular among commoners, such as the pleasure quarters or Kabuki theatre, nishiki-e developed primarily through yakusha-e prints of actors and bijinga portraits of beautiful women, leading to the creation of various other genres, including prints of birds and flowers, narrative tales, and landscapes.
This exhibition features works selected from a wide range of themes, such as bijinga portraits, yakusha-e prints, and still-life paintings. The works display a diverse number of printing techniques, including sumizuri-e (black monochrome prints), beni-e (prints colored with orange-red), benizuri-e (primitive polychrome prints) and multicolored prints.
Current exhibit includes:
Young Women of the Pleasure District in New Year's Fashion: Mitsuhana of Ohishiya, By Isoda Koryusai, Edo period, 18th century
Aquatic Life: Horse mackerel and Prawn, By Utagawa Hiroshige, Edo period, 19th century
Beauty with Cat, By Isoda Koryusai, Edo period, 18th century