Kou, from the series "Pictures of No Performances (Nogaku Zue)"
1898
Medium
Color woodblock print
Dimensions
Approx: 25.2 × 37.4 cm (10 × 15 3/8 in.)
Classification
woodblock print
Department
Arts of Asia
Museum
Art Institute of Chicago
Accession Number
154996
Art Historical Context
Behold the striking *Kou*, a color woodblock print from Tsoka Kôgyo's renowned series *Pictures of Noances (Nogaku Z)*, created in 1898. Kôgyo, a master of late 19th-century Japanese printmaking and a disciple of the celebrated Yoshitoshi, captured the ethereal world of Noh theater in work. Noh, Japan's classical masked drama dating back to the 14th century, blends poetry, music, and dance in ritualistic performances. This print, housed in the Art Institute of Chicago's Arts of Asia collection, measures about 25.2 × 37.4 cm and exemplifies Kôgyo's dedication to preserving these timeless tradit...
About the Artist
Tsukioka Kôgyo · 1869–1927
Tsukioka Kōgyo (1869–1927), born Hanyū Bennosuke in Tokyo's bustling Nihonbashi district as the second son of an innkeeper family, navigated a path from humble origins to mastery in Japanese printmaking. After his father's early death, he was raised by his mother's Sakamaki family and apprenticed in pottery painting under his uncle, a ceramics exporter in Yokohama. He briefly attended the Tokyo Sc...