Iris Garden
c. 1781/89
Medium
Color woodblock print; oban triptych
Dimensions
37.1 × 24.2 cm (right sheet), 37.2 × 24.8 cm (center sheet), 37.3 × 25.2 cm (left sheet)
Classification
woodblock print
Department
Arts of Asia
Museum
Art Institute of Chicago
Accession Number
21746
Art Historical Context
Step into the serene beauty of *Iris Garden*, a captivating color woodblock print triptych by Katsukawa Shunchô, created around 1781–89. This Edo-period masterpiece from Japan's ukiyo-e tradition—meaning "pictures of the floating"—unfolds across three oban sheets (each roughly 37 × 25 cm), offering a panoramic view of lush iris blooms swaying in a tranquil garden. Shunchô, a master of the Katsukawa school, renowned for his elegant depictions of nature and daily life, blending delicate figures with vibrant seasonal motifs. The woodblock printing technique exemplifies ukiyo-e innovation: artisa...
About the Artist
Katsukawa Shunchô · 1780–1801
Katsukawa Shunchō was a Japanese designer of ukiyo-e woodblock prints active from approximately 1780 to 1795, one of the most graceful practitioners of the art of bijinga — pictures of beautiful women. He trained in the studio of Katsukawa Shunshō, the founding master of the Katsukawa School, whose pupils also included the young Hokusai. Shunshō's school was primarily known for realistic portraits...