A Private Puppet Performance
Okumura Masanobu 奥ææ¿ä¿¡ (1686-1764)
18th century
Classification
Painting
Department
Smithsonian Collection
Museum
Smithsonian American Art Museum
Credit
Gift of Charles Lang Freer
Accession Number
F1902.250
Tags
Charles Lang Freer collectionEdo period (1615 - 1868)JapanJapanese Artkakemonomusicpuppetryshamisenuki-eukiyo-e
About this artwork
A large private residence is the setting for this performance by itinerant puppeteers. Chanters and a musician provide vocal and musical accompaniment for the puppeteer. To the left, behind a shoji (sliding paper-covered screen) are additional puppets. The single figure in the right foreground is probably a narrator. Women of the household enjoy the performance discreetly from behind bamboo screens. The artist Masanobu incorporated principles of European perspective into this picture. Uki-e, or ...