The Actor Ichikawa Komazo II as the monk Shunkan in the play "Shunkan Shima Monogatari," performed at the Kawarazaki Theater in the ninth month, 1791
c. 1791
Medium
Color woodblock print; from a multisheet hosoban composition
Dimensions
30.8 × 13.9 cm (12 1/8 × 5 1/2 in.)
Classification
woodblock print
Department
Arts of Asia
Museum
Art Institute of Chicago
Accession Number
32521
Art Historical Context
Step into the vibrant world of Edo-period Japan with Katsukawa Shun'ei's *The Actor Ichikawa Komazo as the monk Shunk* (c. 1791). This color woodblock print captures the kabuki actor in his dramatic role from the play *Shunkan Shima Monogatari*, performed Tokyo's Kawarazaki Theater the ninth month of 1791. Shun'ei, a master of the Katsukawa school, excels in yakusha-e—portraits of actors—bringing Komazo's intense expression and flowing robes to life with bold lines and vivid hues. As part of the ukiyo-e tradition, or "pictures of the floating world," this print reflects Japan's fascination wi...
About the Artist
Katsukawa Shun'ei · 1762–1819
Katsukawa Shun'ei (1762–1819) was a Japanese ukiyo-e artist who succeeded his master Katsukawa Shunshō as head of the Katsukawa school around 1800, continuing and advancing the school's innovations in kabuki actor portraiture. Born on December 13, 1762, into a landlord family with the surname Isoda, Shun'ei trained under Shunshō from his youth and became one of the most accomplished designers of y...