Fan-Box with Fans
19th century
Medium
Woodblock print (surimono); ink and color on paper
Dimensions
5 3/4 x 7 7/16 in. (14.6 x 18.9 cm)
Classification
Prints
Culture & Period
Japan · Edo period (1615–1868)
Department
Asian Art
Museum
Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York, NY
Credit
H. O. Havemeyer Collection, Bequest of Mrs. H. O. Havemeyer, 1929
Accession Number
JP2081
Tags
Art Historical Context
**Fan-Box with Fans** Totoya Hokkei is delightful 19th-centuryblock print from Japan's Edo period (161–1868), showcasing the artist's mastery of *surimono*—luxurious, privately commissioned prints often created for special occasions like New Year's greetings. Measuring just 5 3/4 x 7 7/16 inches, this intimate ink-and-color work on paper captures a lacquered fan-box brimming with folded fans, rendered with exquisite detail and vibrant hues typical of ukiyo-e traditions. Hokkei, a pupil of the famed Katsushika Hokusai, excelled in these small-scale gems, employing sophisticated woodblock techn...
About the Artist
Totoya Hokkei · 1780–1850
Totoya Hokkei (魚屋 北渓, 1780–1850), born Iwakubo Tatsuyuki in Edo (modern Tokyo), began his life as a humble fishmonger in the Yotsuya Samegahashi district, a trade reflected in his art name "Totoya," meaning fish shop. He transitioned to art through rigorous training, first studying under Kanō Yōsen'in Korenobu, head of the Kobikichō branch of the prestigious Kanō school, where he honed landscape p...