A Poet in the New Year
late 1820s
Medium
Color woodblock print; surimono
Dimensions
20.5 × 27.2 cm (8 1/8 × 10 3/4 in.)
Classification
woodblock print
Department
Arts of Asia
Museum
Art Institute of Chicago
Accession Number
80937
Art Historical Context
Welcome to the Art Institute of Chicago's of Asia collection, where Yashima Gakutei'sA Poet in the New* (late 1820s) captures the poetic spirit of Japan's Edo period. This intimate color woodblock print, just 20.5 × 27.2 cm, exemplifies *surimono*—luxurious, privately commissioned prints often exchanged as New Year's greetings among literati. Gakutei, a master of ukiyo-e ("pictures of the floating world"), specialized in these refined works, blending delicate imagery with calligraphy to evoke seasonal renewal and artistic camaraderie. The print's significance lies in its cultural role during ...
About the Artist
Yashima Gakutei · 1786–1868
Yashima Gakutei (c. 1786–1868), born in Osaka as the illegitimate son of a Tokugawa shogunate samurai named Hirata, adopted the name from his mother's subsequent marriage into the Yashima clan. Little is documented about his early years beyond these familial ties, but he pursued artistic training under the esteemed ukiyo-e masters Totoya Hokkei and Katsushika Hokusai, absorbing their precision in ...