Murasaki Shikibu
Edo period (1615–1868), about 1784
Medium
Color woodblock print; oban
Dimensions
36.1 × 24.5 cm (14 1/4 × 9 11/16 in.)
Classification
woodblock print
Department
Arts of Asia
Museum
Art Institute of Chicago
Accession Number
22661
Rights
Public Domain
About this artwork
The famous author of the "Genji Monogatari" is depicted seated on the engawa of one of the buildings of Ishiyama. Buddhist temple on a rocky hillside overlooking Lake Biwa where she is said to have written that classic romance. Writing materials are upon a low tabl e before her and she holds a brush in her hand.
About the Artist
Torii Kiyonaga · 1752–1815
Torii Kiyonaga, born Sekiguchi Shinsuke in 1752 in Uraga, Sagami Province, was the son of an Edo bookseller who owned tenements near a bustling fish market. At age 14 in 1765, he began his apprenticeship under Torii Kiyomitsu, the third-generation head of the prestigious Torii school of ukiyo-e, renowned for kabuki theater illustrations and signage. Adopted into the Torii family, Kiyonaga succeede...