An Inauspicious Day
c.1769
Medium
Color woodblock print; hashira-e
Dimensions
68.9 × 12.1 cm (27 1/8 × 4 3/4 in.)
Classification
woodblock print
Department
Arts of Asia
Museum
Art Institute of Chicago
Accession Number
89064
Rights
Public Domain
About this artwork
This print shows the Wind God as a wild-haired, half-naked demon, his bag billowing above his head as he looks down from his platform in the clouds. He has caught sight of a young beauty out for a stroll and unleashed a sudden gust, scattering her roll of paper and sending the letter she’d been carrying up to his perch, where he now has it in hand. The wooden placard to the right of the Wind God announces the inauspicious days of the year, when an unwary or unlucky person who undertakes a task m...
About the Artist
Suzuki Harunobu · 1725–1770
Suzuki Harunobu (c. 1725-1770) was a Japanese ukiyo-e artist who revolutionized woodblock printing by developing nishiki-e—full-color prints using multiple woodblocks—in 1765. Before Harunobu, Japanese prints were limited to two or three colors; his innovation unleashed the entire artist's palette, transforming ukiyo-e into the vibrant art form that would later captivate Western artists from Manet...