Mother and Son by a Mosquito Net
ca. 1769
Medium
Woodblock print; ink and color on paper
Dimensions
10 3/4 x 7 15/16 in. (27.3 x 20.2 cm) medium-size print (chu-ban)
Classification
Prints
Culture & Period
Japan · Edo period (1615–1868)
Department
Asian Art
Museum
Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York, NY
Credit
Purchase, Joseph Pulitzer Bequest, 1918
Accession Number
JP565
Tags
Art Historical Context
Suzuki Harunobu’s *Mother and Son by a Mosquito Net* (ca. 1769) captures a tender domestic moment from Japan’s Edo period. Created as a woodblock print in ink and color on paper, this medium-size chu-ban sheet reflects the everyday life scenes popular in ukiyo-e. Harunobu, renowned for pioneering full-color nishiki-e prints in the 1760s, brought delicate hues and graceful lines to such intimate subjects, elevating prints from simple illustrations to refined art. The composition shows a mother gently attending to her child beside a draped mosquito net, a common household feature in summer. Thi...
About the Artist
Suzuki Harunobu · 1725–1770
Suzuki Harunobu (c. 1725-1770) was a Japanese ukiyo-e artist who revolutionized woodblock printing by developing nishiki-e—full-color prints using multiple woodblocks—in 1765. Before Harunobu, Japanese prints were limited to two or three colors; his innovation unleashed the entire artist's palette, transforming ukiyo-e into the vibrant art form that would later captivate Western artists from Manet...