Woman with book sitting next to a New Year pull toy

Art Historical Context

In the late 1810s, Japanese ukiyo-e artist Tot Hokkei captured a serene moment of everyday elegance in *Woman with Book Sitting Next to a New Year Pull Toy a delicate color woodblock print in theikishiban format—a compact square of about 21.8 × 19 cm, perfect for intimate viewing. Hokkei, a of the famed Katsushika Hokusai, specialized in these refined surimono prints, were privately commissioned for New Year's greetings among poetry enthusiasts. Produced with meticulous craftsmanship, surimono often featured embossing, mica dusting, and vibrant pigments applied through multiple woodblocks, elevating them beyond standard ukiyo-e to luxurious keepsakes. This charming scene depicts a graceful woman absorbed in reading beside a festive pull toy, evoking the quiet joys of domestic life during Japan's Edo period (1603–1868). The pull toy, a playful symbol of New Year celebrations, hints at wishes for prosperity and good fortune—customary gifts that brought delight to homes. As a bijin-ga (image of a beauty), Hokkei's work celebrates feminine poise and literati culture, blending subtle humor with poetic elegance. Often inscribed with kyōka verses, such prints fostered social bonds in elite circles. Housed in the Art Institute of Chicago's Arts of Asia department, this piece exemplifies surimono's cultural role in marking seasonal transitions, offering visitors a window into Edo Japan's vibrant printmaking tradition.

About the Artist

Totoya Hokkei · 1780–1850

Totoya Hokkei (魚屋 北渓, 1780–1850), born Iwakubo Tatsuyuki in Edo (modern Tokyo), began his life as a humble fishmonger in the Yotsuya Samegahashi district, a trade reflected in his art name "Totoya," meaning fish shop. He transitioned to art through rigorous training, first studying under Kanō Yōsen'in Korenobu, head of the Kobikichō branch of the prestigious Kanō school, where he honed landscape p...