Katsushika Hokusai (葛飾北斎) (artist 1760 – 1849)
Scene from Ehon tsui no hinagata ('Picture-book of Patterns of Loving Couples' - 絵本つひの雛形)
1812
14.25 in x 9.875 in (Overall dimensions) Japanese woodblock print
The British Museum - the full ehon volume This album is signed Shishiki Gankō (紫色雁高). Hokusai created works under more than 50 gō and this was one of the more rarely used ones.
Sotheby's refers to this volume as "This set is one of Hokusai's masterpieces."
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The British Museum translates the title as a 'Picture-book Models of Couples'.
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Auguste Rodin owned a copy of this ehon and it is on deposit in the Rodin Museum in Paris. It is an album of 12 compositions.
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Sawaka Takamura Chang wrote in Andon (no. 107, April 2019) in an article about Keisai Eisen a curious bit of information. "According to his biography, Eisen unofficially studied with Katsushika Hokusai, one of the most influential ukiyo-e artist of the late Edo period. Although it is unclear when Eisen actually studied with Hokusai, some of his works show this influence. Hayashi Yoshikazu argues that one of Hokusai's erotic print books, Ehon tsui no hinagata (Models of couples, 1812) has a preface signed by Eisen with his writer's name Jokōken Shujin. All of the erotic illustrations are considered to be by Hokusai's daughter Oei, Eisen's signature with his shunga artistic name Murasakiiroan Gankō is found on many pages. Hayashi concludes that this was designed by Eisen in terms of drafts of pictures, text and postscript, but that Oei drew all of the final illustrations.
erotic prints (shunga - 春画) (genre)
picture book (ehon - 絵本) (genre)