川豊春画　「浮絵境町葺屋町顔見世夜芝居之図」|Perspective Print (Uki-e) of the Theaters in Sakaichō and Fukiyachō on Opening Night

Utagawa Toyoharu

ca. 1780 · Woodblock print (nishiki-e); ink and color on paper; horizontal ōban · Asian Art

Like Broadway in New York, the Sakaichō and Fukiyachō quarters were the center of Edo's theater district, which was particularly lively on the night of kaomise, the opening performances of the Kabuki season. Toyoharu’s predecessor, Okumura Masanobu (1686–1764), is credited as the first Japanese artist to create prints using one-point perspective (uki-e) in depicting interior space. Toyoharu, founder of the Utagawa school, was the first to master the device to depict outdoor scenes in ukiyo-e prints and paintings.

Artist

Utagawa Toyoharu

Date

ca. 1780

Medium

Woodblock print (nishiki-e); ink and color on paper; horizontal ōban

Culture

Japan

Department

Asian Art

Credit line

Rogers Fund, 1914