Utagawa Kunisada (歌川国貞) / Toyokuni III (三代豊国) (artist 1786 – 01/12/1865)
The Style of a Daimyō's Maid: Ueno (上野 Ueno goten fū) from the series Edo Meisho (Famous Places of Edo - 江戸名所) - surimono-like
ca 1824 – 1825
5 in x 7.5 in (Overall dimensions) Japanese woodblock print
Signed: ōju (by special request)
Kunisada ga (應需国貞画)
Museum of Oriental Art, Venice (via Ritsumeikan University)
Nationaal Museum van Wereldculturen (Rijksmuseum Volkenkunde, Leiden) The title cartouche is placed within a matsukawa-bishi (松皮菱) or pine bark, i.e., triple lozenge, motif. Kunisada used it elsewhere, but only rarely, to enclose his toshidama symbol which often accompanied his signature.
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"Ueno [上野]... was the location of several daimyo estates including that of the Maeda Family, the feudal lords of Kaga province. The daimyo maid carries a hand lantern in one hand and a roll of paper in the other. Her robe is simply decorated in green, purple and white and lined in red and yellow. Her hair is held in place by a single hairpin. The awkward pose of the figure, with hunched shoulders and swollen feet, is typical of Kunisada's work of the period. In the background, figures can be seen enjoying the blossoming cherry trees which surround the buildings of the Kan'eji temple complex in Ueno."
Quoted from: Kunisada's World by Sebastian Izzard, p. 94. There is an accompanying color reproduction on page 93.
There are other copies of this print in the Kupferstich-Kabinett, Staatliche Kunstsammlungen, Dresden and in the Rijksmuseum voor Volkenkunde, Leiden.
beautiful women (bijin-ga - 美人画) (genre)
landscape prints (fūkeiga 風景画) (genre)