A Private Puppet Performance
Okumura Masanobu 奥村政信 (1686-1764)
18th century
Classification
Painting
Department
Smithsonian Collection
Museum
Smithsonian American Art Museum
Credit
Gift of Charles Lang Freer
Accession Number
F1902.250
Rights
Public Domain
Tags
Charles Lang Freer collectionEdo period (1615 - 1868)JapanJapanese Artkakemonomusicpuppetryshamisenuki-eukiyo-e
About this artwork
A large private residence is the setting for this performance by itinerant puppeteers. Chanters and a musician provide vocal and musical accompaniment for the puppeteer. To the left, behind a shoji (sliding paper-covered screen) are additional puppets. The single figure in the right foreground is probably a narrator. Women of the household enjoy the performance discreetly from behind bamboo screens. The artist Masanobu incorporated principles of European perspective into this picture. Uki-e, or ...