Posts by Richard Kruml:
Kitagawa HIDEMARO (Active c. early 19th century)
Click here to view image full size.
A pupil of Utamaro who produced some fine work at the turn of the century. An aiban design showing a portrait of the courtesan Sodenoura of the Tamaya House and her kamuro. Published c. 1810s.
Fine impression. Extremely good fresh colour. One paper flaw, otherwise fine condition. Full size. Signed Hidemaro ga.
Status: Sold
Utagawa TOYOKUNI (1769-1825)
Click here to view image full size. Tsuki, “Moon” from a set of three prints, San bijin, “Three Beauties.” Based on the Snow, Moon, Flower theme. Shows a koto player adjusting the finger picks in order to start playing. Published by Kamaya Matabei, c 1810s. Fine impression and colour. Slight creasing, otherwise very good […]
Utagawa KUNISADA (1786-1864)
Click here to view image full size. A tripyych showing a party of women and a child running in the rain towards the entrance of the Mimeguri Shrine. Mimeguri no yudachi, “An Evening Shower at Mimeguri.” This famous shrine was on the bank of the Sumida at Mukojima and a short ferry ride from Asakusa. […]
Utagawa TOYOKUNI (1769-1825)
Click here to view image full size. The elongated figure of the famous oiran Marino Yoyoharu parading with her kamuro Ikeno Yoyoume. Above, on a banner hanging from a tree, is the name and address of the courtesan’s location in the Yoshiwara: Sumimachi, Matsubaya uchi. Published by Tsuraya Juzaburo, c. 1796, Toyokuni’s best period. This […]
Torii KIYOMITSU (1735-1785)
Click here to view image full size. A large oban panel, 11.75 x 16.5 in; 29.75 x 42 cms showing three beauties playing, from the left, a shamisen, a koto, and a kokyu in an interior with hand-painted screens. A beautiful and important print. Kiyomitsu was the son and pupil of Kiyonobu II, the third […]
Kikugawa EIZAN (1787-1867)
Click here to view image full size. A vertican oban diptych showing a courtesan holding a letter between her teeth. This, and biting a towel, were considered highly erotic and the prelude to intimate relations. Her obi, which has a design of a dragon amongst clouds, is printed with extensive mica added to the grey […]
Kesai EISEN (1790-1848)
Click here to view image full size. An aizuri-e vertical oban diptych with touches of red and green. A response to censorship bans which were promulgated to curtail excessive extravagance. (In this case the use of multiple blocks.) The bans were extended to the theatre and other areas that the Shogunate deemed to be susceptible […]
Utagawa KUNISADA (1786-1864)
Click here to view image full size. A triptych showing two beauties and a maidservant lighting their way with a lantern and carrying a shamisen box. The beam of light from the lantern illuminates the foreground figures and the leaping dog but leaves the background figures in silhouette. A lovely design. Another impression is illustrated […]
Utagawa TOYOKUNI II ( TOYOSHIGE ) (1777-1835)
Click here to view image full size. A courtesan with a toothpick and playing with a cat compared to the actor Iwai Hanshiro V ( inset in a sake cup top right ). From a series Imayo bijin awase, shinsei sugatami sakazuki, “A Comparison of Modern Beauties – A New Mirror of Sake Cups.” Published […]
Utagawa TOYOKUNI I (1769-1825)
Click here to view image full size. Shows a seated lady holding a fan compared to the actor Segawa Senjo ( previously known as Segawa Kikunojo III, inset in fan upper left ). From a series Ukiyo butai-ko Senjo-fu, “Fragrance from the Floating World’s Stage, in the Style of Senjo.” Published by Tsumuraya Saburobei, c […]
Suzuki HARUNOBU (1725-1770)
Click here to view image full size. A chuban print from an untitled series showing a courtesan lying under a futon waiting for her kamuro to prepare her pipe in the adjoining room. A fusuma partially separates the two rooms and has a painting of a mountain pheasant on a craggy rock (alluded to in […]
Torii KIYOMINE ( KIYOMITSU II ) (1787-1868)
Click here to view image full size. Beauties on the beach at Kamakura with white cranes. This is an allusion or pastiche ( mitate ) of the story that Minamoto Yoritomo’s favourite amusement was flying cranes with labels attached to their legs requesting those who saw them to report the fact and fly them again. […]
Suzuki HARUNOBU (1724-1770)
Click here to view image full size. A chuban showing the courtesan Matsukaze of the Ogi-ya House from a set of prints: Ukiyo kika, “Strange Flowers of the Floating World.” Shows the courtesan parading outside a Yoshiwara house with her two kamuro. One of the most influential ukiyo-e artists taking full advantage of polychrome printing […]
Utagawa KUNISADA (1786-1864)
Click here to view image full size. Natsu, “Summer” from a set f four prints Shii no ch “The Four Seasons.” A beauty holds a large umbrella against a summer storm with lightning flashing around her. Published by Kawaguchiya Uhei, c 1833-34. Very good impression, colour and condition. Signed Kochoro Kunisada ga with double Toshidama […]
Ikeda EISEN (1790-1848)
Click here to view image full size. Decorative paper from a series Tosei kobutsu hakkei, “Eight Favourite Things in the Modern World.” The set compares beauties with their favourite “things.” In this case paper, shown top left, while other designs from the set compare beauties to dolls, playing cards, the theatre, kimono, etc. Shows a […]
Keisai EISEN (1790-1848)
Click here to view image full size. An amorous couple on a balcony with a large full moon. One of the three best designs from a set of twelve prints: Keisei higo, “Secret Words of a Courtesan” published c 1822-25. Although the set comes under the shunga heading, each print is an abuna-e design, without […]
Kitagawa UTAMARO (1753-1806)
Click here to view image full size. The lovers Hinadori and Kuganosuke from a series of half-length portraits of pairs of lovers featured in joruri love-suicide plays. (Joruri were bunraku puppet dramas). Jitsu kurabe iro no minakami, “True Feelings Compared: The Founts of Love.” At the height of their popularity the Japanese government cracked down […]
Utagawa KUNIYOSHI (1797-1861)
Click here to view image full size. An aizuri-e print of the courtesan Hontsue of the Daimonjiya House in the Yoshiwara, Edo. Seated on a ledge, she holds an extremely long pipe and is compared to one of the sights of Edo: The Ryogoku Bridge. Published by Kawaguchiya Chozo, c 1830s. Fine impression, colour and […]
Keisai EISEN (1790-1848)
Click here to view image full size. A winter scene with an amorous couple in a boat keeping warm beneath a huge duvet. One of the three best designs from a set of twelve prints: Keisei higo, “Secret Words of a Courtesan” published c 1822-25. Although the set comes under the shunga heading, each print […]
Torii KIYOTSUNE (Fl. c 1757-1779)
Click here to view image full size. A pillar print showing an amorous couple walking beside rice paddies. In the background a line of women plant rice. Kiyotsune was a pupil of Kiyomitsu and specialised in theatrical prints. Published c early 1770s. Rare. Fine impression. Exceptionally well retained colour. Very good condition. Signed Kiyotsune […]
Utagawa KUNIYOSHI (1797-1861)
Click here to view image full size. Women washing cloth in the Chofu River from a set of six triptychs of the Six Tama (or Jewel, or Crystal) Rivers. Musashi no kuni Chofu Tamagawa, “Chofu Crystal River in Musashi Province.” Published by Sanoya Kihei, 1847-8. Very good impression, colour and condition. Signed Ichiyusai Kuniyoshi […]
Tsukioka YOSHITOSHI (1839-1892)
Click here to view image full size. Spring from a set of triptychs Zensei shiki, “The Four Seasons at their Height.” (Actually, only three designs known.) Shows beauties enjoying an outing at the Risshun Plum Garden on the first day of spring at Hara village in the Ebara District. Published by Akiyama Buemon, 3/1884. […]
Tsukioka YOSHITOSHI (1839-1892)
Click here to view image full size. Niai-so: Koka nenkan kuruwa no geisha fuzoku, “Looking suitable: the appearance of a brothel geisha of the Koka era” (1844-1848). From the set Thirty-two Aspects of Women published by Tsunashima Kamekichi, 1888. Shows the beauty dressed as a fashionable young man. Very fine impression of the […]
Ichiryusai HIROSHIGE (1797-1858)
Click here to view image full size. Shows a beauty composing a letter from a set of ten prints Fukutoku gane no narikei, “Virtuous Women and the Money Tree.” Published by Aritaya Kiyoemon, c. 1847-50. The money tree branches make up the kanji characters of the sub-title, in this case Shuseki, the tree of good […]
Katsukawa SHUN’EI (1762-1819)
Click here to view image full size. A parading courtesan with her two kamuro. Published c. late 1790s by Murataya Jirobei (Eiyudo). Unsigned, but the manner of drawing the courtesan’s face is typical of Shun’ei. Interestingly, another unsigned print (with spurious Shunsho signature) but by Shun’ei is illustrated in The Actor’s Image, Clark & Ueda, […]
Keisai EISEN (1790-1848)
Click here to view image full size. The courtesan Shiratama of the Sanomatsuya House in the Shin Yoshiwara seated looking into a mirror. Episode Sekidera from a Seven Komachi set: Shin Yoshiwara yugimi nana Komachi. The set based on the seven episodes in the life of the famous 9th century poetess Ono no Komachi. Published […]
Keisai EISEN (1790-1848)
Click here to view image full size. The courtesan Efuku of the Owariya House in the Shin Yoshiwara seated at a low desk and holding a toothpick. Episode Kiyomidzu from a Seven Komachi set: Shin Yoshiwara yugimi nana Komachi. The set based on the seven episodes in the life of the famous 9th century poetess […]
Tsukioka YOSHITOSHI (1839-1892)
Click here to view image full size. Mita-so: Tempo nenkan o-kosho fuzoku, “Looking Inquisitive: The Appearance of a Maid in the Tempo Era” ( 1830 – 1844 ). From the set: Thirty-two Aspects of Women published by Tsunashima Kamekichi, 1888. Shows a maid peering through a summer bamboo screen. Superb impression of the first […]
Utagawa KUNIYOSHI (1797-1861)
Click here to view image full size. Etchu Namerikawa otako, “Giant Octopuses in Namerikawa in Etchu” and sub-title Oo itai, “Ouch.” Obviously the cat’s claw being compared to the menacing tentacles of the octopus. A series of seventy prints Sankai medetai zue, “Affectionate Feelings for Mountains and Seas.” The set compares half-length beauties with famous […]
Utagawa TOYOKUNI I (1769-1825)
Click here to view image full size. A beauty climbing stairs, the ninth month from a set of twelve. Published c 1813 by Nishimuraya Yohachi. Beauties ascending stairs was a stock subject for ukiyo-e artists. I’m not sure why. Fine impression, colour and condition. Signed Toyokuni ga. Status: Sold
Chobunsai EISHI (1756-1829)
Click here to view image full size. An aiban from a set of four prints: Shiki warabe asobi, a series of prints comparing young children to the four seasons. Another from the set is illustrated in Estampes Japonaises. Collection des Musees royeaux d’Art et d’Histoire, Bruxelles, 1989, cat. 319, p. XXXIX ( incorrectly attributed to […]
Utagawa TOYOKUNI I (1769-1825)
Click here to view image full size. A beauty from a set Furyu hakkei, “Fashionable Eight Views.” Each beauty represents one of the famous Eight Views of Omi, here being Evening Glow at Seta.This theme, which originates from China, is often encountered in Japanese art. Shows a young woman unrolling a scroll with a view […]
Kitagawa UTAMARO (1753-1806)
Click here to view image full size. Shows Shinanoya Ohan (left) and Obiya Choemon from a series of half-length portraits of pairs of lovers featured in joruri love-suicide plays. Jisu kurabe iro no minakami, “True Feelings Compared: The Founts of Love.” Choemon was the adopted heir of Obiya, an obi business in Kyoto. Ohan was […]
Chobunsai EISHI (1756-1829)
Click here to view image full size. A parading oiran, Senzan of the Choji-ya, with her two kamuro Isoji and Hanaji. From a set Seiro moyo awase “Comparisons of Brothel Patterns.” Published by Nishimuraya Yohachi (Eijudo), c 1796-7. See Brandt, Hosoda Eishi, Eike Moog, 1977, 100. No. 263. Provenance: Ex Louis Gonse collection. […]
Kitagawa UTAMARO II (?-1831?)
Click here to view image full size. A mother holding her child dressed as Kintaro (later Sakata no Kintoki) holding a small hatchet (ono). From a series Shichi henge kodakara asobi, “Dance of Seven Changes Played by Precious Children.” Published by Iwatoya Kisaburo, 1812. Fine impression. Very good colour. Very minor soil, otherwise very good […]
Tsukioka YOSHITOSHI (1839-1892)
Click here to view image full size. Tanoshindei-so: Kaei nenken shisho no fuzoku, “Looking as if She is Enjoying Herself: The Appearance of a Teacher During the Kaei Period [1848-1854].” Shows a samisen teacher, the majority of whose pupils would have been geisha. From a set Thirty-two Aspects of Women published by Tsunashima Kamekichi, 1888. […]
Isoda KORYUSAI (1735-1790)
Click here to view image full size. An hashira-e, “pillar print.” A night scene showing a beauty on the shoulders of her lover reaching up to a branch of plum blossom beneath a spring moon. From a set Furyu Rokkasen, “Fashionable Six Poetic Immortals,” this being a poem by Ariwara no Narihira (825-880) where the […]
Kitagawa UTAMARO (1753-1806)
Click here to view image full size. A benigirai-e (red-avoiding) triptych showing from right to left: A young nobleman with a falcon, a beauty beside him holding his sword and another seated smoking a pipe; the centre panel shows two women and a child holding a small falcon; while the last sheet has two women […]
Hosoda EISHI (1756-1829)
Click here to view image full size. A triptych representing Matsukaze, “The Wind in the Pines,” Chapter XVIII, from a set of triptychs Furyu yatsushi Genji, “Genji in Modern Dress.” Brandt, Hosoda Eishi, Stuttgart, 1977, lists nine from the series (this being no. 58, p. 116, illustrated p. 16). Based on the famous early 11th […]
Utagawa TOYOKUNI I (1769-1825)
Click here to view image full size. Two volumes complete Yakusha sangaikyo, “Amusements of Actors on the Third Floor” (iez the dressing-rooms or green rooms). Published Kansei 13 (1801) by Nishimiya Shinroku and Yorozuya Tajiemon, Edo. An extremely rare and important work showing actors engaged in various private pursuits and not on stage, as is […]