The Actor Bando Mitsugoro I as a Man in Daimyo Attire
ca. 1778
Medium
Woodblock print; ink and color on paper
Dimensions
12 7/32 x 5 5/8 in. (31.1 x 14.3 cm)
Classification
Prints
Culture & Period
Japan · Edo period (1615–1868)
Department
Asian Art
Museum
Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York, NY
Credit
The Francis Lathrop Collection, Purchase, Frederick C. Hewitt Fund, 1911
Accession Number
JP713
Tags
Art Historical Context
Step into the dazzling world of Edo-period Japan Katsukawa Shunkō'sThe Actor Bando Mitsugoro I as a Man in Daimyo Attire* (ca. 1778). This intimate woodblock print captures the kabuki actor Bando Mitsugoro I in luxurious daimyo robes, evoking the splendor of feudal lords. Shunkō, a master of the Katsukawa school and pioneer in ukiyo-e ("pictures of the floating world"), specialized in yakusha-e—striking portraits of theater stars that blurred the line between stage and street life. Created during the vibrant Edo period (1615–1868), when kabuki theater gripped urban audiences in Tokyo (then Ed...
About the Artist
Katsukawa Shunkō
Katsukawa Shunkō I (1743–1812) was a Japanese ukiyo-e artist who pioneered the ōkubi-e (large-head) portrait format in kabuki actor prints and served as possibly the first student of Katsukawa Shunshō, the founder of the influential Katsukawa school. Born in 1743, Shunkō spent his entire life in Edo (modern Tokyo), working as both a painter and ukiyo-e printmaker specializing in yakusha-e (actor p...