Dressing Room for Musicians at a Theater (Shitakubeya)

Art Historical Context

Step into the bustling backstage world of Edo-period with Katsushika Hokusai's *Dressing Room for Musicians a Theater (Shitakeya)*, a vibrant woodblock print from the Museum of Art's H. O. Havemeyer Collection. This intimate scene captures male musicians preparing amid an array of traditional instruments, offering a rare glimpse into the lively underbelly of theater life during Japan's Edo period (1615–1868). Hokusai, the legendary ukiyo-e master famous for *The Great Wave off Kanagawa masterfully renders the "floating world" of everyday pleasures, blending humor and humanity in this snapshot of performers readying for the stage. Crafted as a color woodblock print on paper—measuring about 8 by 22 inches—this *oban*-sized work exemplifies the collaborative genius of ukiyo-e production. Artists like Hokusai designed the image, while skilled carvers and printers layered inks to achieve luminous colors and fine details, from the textures of robes to the gleam of shamisen and taiko drums. Affordable and widely circulated, these prints democratized art, preserving fleeting moments of kabuki theater culture. Housed in the Met's Asian Art department since 1929, this piece highlights Hokusai's enduring fascination with performers and musicians, inviting us to appreciate the artistry behind the curtain in a golden age of Japanese printmaking.

About the Artist

Katsushika Hokusai · 1760–1849

Katsushika Hokusai (1760-1849) stands as one of history's most influential artists, a Japanese master who revolutionized the ukiyo-e woodblock print tradition and profoundly shaped Western art. Born in the Katsushika district of Edo (modern-day Tokyo) to an artisan family, Hokusai lived through nearly nine decades of extraordinary creative evolution, adopting over thirty different artistic names t...