蜀山人（大田 南畝）賛 雪・月・花図 |Snow, Moon, and Cherry Blossoms (Yoshiwara in Three Seasons)
Chōbunsai Eishi
early 19th century · Triptych of hanging scrolls; ink, color, and gold on silk · Asian Art
These paintings by the samurai-born artist Chōbunsai Eishi comprise a triptych representing Yoshiwara, the area around the brothel district of Edo in three seasons of the year, each with its most appealing feature: snow in winter, cherry flowers in spring, and the moon in autumn. The inscriptions on each scroll are seasonal kyōka (witty thirty-one-syllable poems), each signed “Shokusanjin” (Ōta Nanpo, 1749–1823), one of the popular poets of his time. The kyōka above the courtesan likens her unrivalled beauty to that of cherry trees planted along Nakanochō, the main boulevard of Yoshiwara, every spring: Nakanochō uetaru hana no katawara ni miyama-gi nado wa hitomoto mo nashi There’s not a single tree from deep in the mountains that could stand proudly beside flowering cherries planted along Nakanochō Boulevard. —Shokusanjin (Trans. John T. Carpenter)
- Artist
- Chōbunsai Eishi
- Date
- early 19th century
- Medium
- Triptych of hanging scrolls; ink, color, and gold on silk
- Culture
- Japan
- Department
- Asian Art
- Credit line
- Mary Griggs Burke Collection, Gift of the Mary and Jackson Burke Foundation, 2015
