Arashi Rikan II in an Osaka Kabuki Scene
Artist: Gigado Ashiyuki (Japanese, Active 1813-1833)
Publisher: Honsei
Date: about 1827
Dimensions:
14 3/4 x 10 in.
Medium: color woodblock print
Classification: Prints
Credit Line: Purchased with funds from the Libbey Endowment, Gift of Edward Drummond Libbey
Object number: 2010.2
Label Text:Woodblock print designer Gigado Ashiyuki specialized in images of Kabuki actors in their roles. Here he depicts a dramatic scene with actor Arashi Rikan II (1788–1837) bursting out of a netted sedan chair (kago) and brandishing a knife.
Prints of Kabuki actors, who were always shown in their stage roles, were avidly collected during the Edo Period (1615–1868) in Japan. Actor prints reached such tremendous popularity that in 1842 the government banned them, along with images of courtesans. Artists were urged to portray more morally uplifting subjects from history or face imprisonment or exile.
Prints of Kabuki actors, who were always shown in their stage roles, were avidly collected during the Edo Period (1615–1868) in Japan. Actor prints reached such tremendous popularity that in 1842 the government banned them, along with images of courtesans. Artists were urged to portray more morally uplifting subjects from history or face imprisonment or exile.
Not on view
In Collection(s)