Fire: Song Jiangming (Ka, Sokomei), from the Series "Shuihuzhuan Heroes for the Five Elements (Suiko gogyo)"
early 1830s
Medium
Color woodblock print; surimono
Dimensions
21.2 × 18 cm (8 3/8 × 7 1/8 in.)
Classification
woodblock print
Department
Arts of Asia
Museum
Art Institute of Chicago
Accession Number
81120
Art Historical Context
**Fire: Song JiangmingKa, Sokomei), from the "Shuihuzh Heroes for the Five Elements (Suiko gogyo)"** Created by Totoya Hokkei in the early 1830s, this intimate color woodblock print is exquisite *surimono*—a deluxe privately commissioned format popular in-period Japan. Measuring just21.2 × cm, it captures Songming (known in Japanese Ka, Sokomei), a heroic figure from the classic Chinese *Shuihuzhuan* (Water Margin or *Suikoden*). As part of Hokkei's series *Suiko gogyo*, the print assigns outlaws from the tale to the five elements, with this work embodying "Fire," symbolizing passion, transf...
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...