Scene from the Drama "Yuki-motsu-take Furisode Genji"
December 1785
Medium
Woodblock print; ink and color on paper
Dimensions
14 9/16 x 9 11/16 in. (37.0 x 24.6 cm)
Classification
Prints
Culture & Period
Japan · Edo period (1615–1868)
Department
Asian Art
Museum
Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York, NY
Credit
Rogers Fund, 1914
Accession Number
JP171
Rights
Public Domain
Tags
Art Historical Context
This vibrant woodblock print by Katsukawa Shunkō captures a dramatic moment from the kabuki play *Yuki-motsu-take Furisode Genji*, performed in Edo (modern Tokyo) in late 1785. Created during Japan’s Edo period, the work reflects the era’s thriving theater culture, when kabuki actors were celebrated celebrities and their performances inspired a flourishing market for affordable prints. Shunkō, a leading artist of the Katsukawa school, specialized in yakusha-e, or actor portraits, bringing dynamic energy to his depictions of stage scenes. Printed with ink and color on paper using the ukiyo-e t...
About the Artist
Katsukawa Shunkō
Katsukawa Shunkō I (1743–1812) was a Japanese ukiyo-e artist who pioneered the ōkubi-e (large-head) portrait format in kabuki actor prints and served as possibly the first student of Katsukawa Shunshō, the founder of the influential Katsukawa school. Born in 1743, Shunkō spent his entire life in Edo (modern Tokyo), working as both a painter and ukiyo-e printmaker specializing in yakusha-e (actor p...