Ichikawa Ebizô V as Togashi Saemon and Ichikawa Danjûrô VIII as Musashibô Benkei in Kanjinchô (The Subscription List), plate 18 from the series Eighteen Great Kabuki Plays (Jûhachiban no uchi)
Utagawa Kunisada I (Toyokuni III)
About 1852
Medium
Ink on paper
Dimensions
34.6 × 24.3 cm (13 5/8 × 9 9/16 in.)
Classification
woodblock print
Department
Arts of Asia
Museum
Art Institute of Chicago
Accession Number
9838
About the Artist
Utagawa Kunisada I (Toyokuni III) · 1786–1864
Utagawa Kunisada I, also known as Toyokuni III (1786–1865), was born Sumida Shōgorō in the Honjo district of Edo (modern Tokyo) into a family that operated a hereditary ferry-boat service, providing stability after his father's early death. Displaying prodigious talent in drawing from childhood, he became an apprentice to the master Utagawa Toyokuni I around 1801 at age fifteen, entering the prest...