Untitled

Kawamata Tsunemasa

first half of the 18th century · Hanging scroll; ink, color, and gold on silk · Asian Art

A young girl accompanied by an older woman (in dark clothing) admires fireflies caught in a small cage. Framed by a tall tree and a meandering stream, the fireflies that rise from the bushes and the two willowy women capture a sense of evening cool. The painter of this elegant nocturnal scene belonged to the Kawamata school of ukiyo-e painting, which developed delicate, doll-like figures of youthful women, the type that was perfected by Harunobu in the second half of the eighteenth century.

Artist

Kawamata Tsunemasa

Date

first half of the 18th century

Medium

Hanging scroll; ink, color, and gold on silk

Culture

Japan

Department

Asian Art

Credit line

The Howard Mansfield Collection, Purchase, Rogers Fund, 1936