Ono no Komachi Praying for Rain
Edo period (1615–1868), 1766
Medium
Color woodblock print; chuban
Dimensions
28.9 × 20.7 cm (11 1/4 × 8 1/8 in.)
Classification
woodblock print
Department
Arts of Asia
Museum
Art Institute of Chicago
Accession Number
44226
Rights
Public Domain
About this artwork
As in the print nearby, Suzuki Harunobu also adapted this design from the earlier series The Seven Fashionable Aspects of Komachi. This version, a pictorial calendar for the year 1766, depicts two girls at a riverbank. In the banner at the upper right is an umbrella and two slips of paper used to write poems. These objects refer to the story of Ono no Komachi praying for rain. Ordered by an emperor to recite a poem about rain to end a drought, Komachi did so, and legend has it that the heavens o...
About the Artist
Suzuki Harunobu · 1725–1770
Suzuki Harunobu (c. 1725-1770) was a Japanese ukiyo-e artist who revolutionized woodblock printing by developing nishiki-e—full-color prints using multiple woodblocks—in 1765. Before Harunobu, Japanese prints were limited to two or three colors; his innovation unleashed the entire artist's palette, transforming ukiyo-e into the vibrant art form that would later captivate Western artists from Manet...