The Actor Ichikawa Danjuro V as Atomi no Ichii in the Play Miya-bashira Iwao no Butai, Performed at the Morita Theater in the Seventh Month, 1773

Art Historical Context

Step into the vibrant world of 18th-century Japanese theater with Katsukawa Shunsho's *The Actor Ichikawa Danj V as Atomi noii in the Play M-bashira Iwao no Butai*. Created around 1773, this color woodblock print captures the star kabuki performer Ichikawa Danjuro V in his role during a summer production at Tokyo's famed Morita Theater. Shunsho, a leading figure in the ukiyo-e ("pictures of the floating world") tradition, specialized in yakusha-e—dynamic portraits of actors that brought the drama of the stage to everyday viewers. Printed in the narrow hosoban format (31.3 × 15 cm), this intim...