Untitled

Torii Kiyonaga

18th century · Hanging scroll; ink and color on silk · Asian Art

Kiyonaga's artistic output was largely devoted to prints. This painting, one of the earliest o his twenty-nine known paintings, shows two women after their bath. The seated woman reads a book entitled Contemporary Fashion. With their hair in bow-curved side locks, popular during the 1780s, these women are themselves reflections of contemporary fashion. Their slightly angular faces and the relative shortness of the standing figure reflect Kiyonaga's early style. The open paper doors suggest the arrival of warm weather, and the space beyond the railed veranda imparts a feeling of airiness. Kiyonaga captures the texture and transparency of the robes, while the arm partially seen through the garment adds to the sensuousness of the scene.

Artist

Torii Kiyonaga

Date

18th century

Medium

Hanging scroll; ink and color on silk

Culture

Japan

Department

Asian Art

Credit line

The Howard Mansfield Collection, Purchase, Rogers Fund, 1936