American Couple
Medium
Woodblock print; ink and color on paper
Dimensions
Image: 14 x 9 1/2 in. (35.6 x 24.1 cm)
Classification
Prints
Culture & Period
Japan · Edo period (1615–1868)
Department
Asian Art
Museum
Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York, NY
Credit
GIft of Lincoln Kirstein, 1959
Accession Number
JP3186
Tags
Art Historical Context
**American Couple** (1860) by Utagawa Yoshitora a vibrant woodblock print Japan's late Edo period (1615–1868), the artist's skill in the ukiyo-e tradition. Yoshitora, a member of the prolific Utagawa school, a stylish American man and woman in Western attire—likely inspired by the influx of foreigners into Japanese ports. The intimate portrait highlights their poised figures against a simple background, emphasizing exotic fashion like top hats, cravats, and full skirts that fascinated Japanese viewers. Created amid Japan's forced opening to the West after Commodore Perry's 1853–1854 expeditio...
About the Artist
Utagawa Yoshitora · 1845–1880
Utagawa Yoshitora (歌川 芳虎), also known by his art names Ichimōsai, Mōsai, and Kinchōrō, was a prolific ukiyo-e artist born in Edo (modern Tokyo), where he trained under the renowned Utagawa Kuniyoshi, recognized as his oldest pupil. Little is known of his early life, which remains sparsely documented, but his earliest works include illustrations for the book *Story of Karasu Kanzaemon’s Loyalty* in...