Untitled

Utagawa Kunimasa

late 1790s · Woodblock print; ink and color on paper · Asian Art

Both Kunimasa and his teacher, Utagawa Toyokuni, produced prints of actors in close-up views (o-kubi-e) around 1795–96. Here, in an arresting image of Matsumoto Yonesaburō in a woman's role, Kunimasa captures a feminine quality in the elegant depiction of the actor's fingers touching the delicate layers of kimono neckbands.

Artist

Utagawa Kunimasa

Date

late 1790s

Medium

Woodblock print; ink and color on paper

Culture

Japan

Department

Asian Art

Credit line

The Howard Mansfield Collection, Purchase, Rogers Fund, 1936