Dancer with a Maple Branch
Katsukawa Shunsho
About 1780-90
Medium
Hanging scroll; Ink, color, and gold on paper
Dimensions
58.7 × 28.1 cm (23 1/8 × 11 1/16 in.); Overall with mount and knobs: 147.8 × 43.8 cm (58 3/16 × 17 1/4 in.)
Classification
hanging scroll
Department
Arts of Asia
Museum
Art Institute of Chicago
Accession Number
35686
Rights
Public Domain
About this artwork
This woman is performing the Momijigari dance, which is done in autumn using branches of red maple as props. She has partially undone her outer robe to reveal one sleeve of the red garment she wears underneath. Red maple leaves can be found as a motif indicating autumn throughout painting and the decorative arts in Japan.