New Year's Decoration of Pine Trees and Manzai Dancers
19th century
Medium
Woodblock print (surimono); ink and color on paper
Dimensions
8 1/4 x 11 3/8 in. (21 x 28.9 cm)
Classification
Prints
Culture & Period
Japan · Edo period (1615–1868)
Department
Asian Art
Museum
Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York, NY
Credit
H. O. Havemeyer Collection, Bequest of Mrs. H. O. Havemeyer, 1929
Accession Number
JP1958
Tags
Art Historical Context
Behold *New Year's Decoration of Pine Trees and Man Dancers*, a charming 19th-century woodblock (surimono) by Ryūryūkyo Shinsai, a of the ukiyo-e tradition during Japan's Edo period (1615–1868). Measuring just 8¼ x 11⅜ inches, this intimate ink and color on paper work captures festive revelry: sturdy pine trees, symbols of longevity and resilience, frame lively manzai dancers—traditional performers who brought songs, dances, and good luck to New Year's celebrations. Surimono like this were luxurious, privately commissioned prints, often produced in small editions for elite patrons exchanging ...
About the Artist
Ryūryūkyo Shinsai · 1799–1823
Ryūryūkyo Shinsai (柳々居辰斎), active from 1799 to 1823, was a prominent Japanese ukiyo-e printmaker based in Edo (modern Tokyo), renowned for his mastery of surimono—luxurious, privately commissioned woodblock prints produced for elite poetry circles and New Year's celebrations. He began his training under Tawaraya Sōri before becoming a student of the legendary Katsushika Hokusai, from whom he recei...