The Actor Ichikawa Monnosuke II as a Buddhist Monk in the Play Edo no Hana Mimasu Soga, Performed at the Nakamura Theater in the Fourth Month, 1783
c. 1783
Medium
Color woodblock print; hosoban; left sheet of triptych (?)
Dimensions
32 × 14.2 cm (12 5/8 × 5 9/16 in.)
Classification
woodblock print
Department
Arts of Asia
Museum
Art Institute of Chicago
Accession Number
31630
Art Historical Context
Step into the vibrant world of18th-century Japanese theater Katsukawa Shunsho's *The Actor Ichikawa Monnosuke II as a Buddhist Monk the Play Edo no Hanaimasu Soga*. Created around 1783, this color woodblock print captures the star kabuki actor in a dramatic role from a performance at the Nakamura Theater in Edo (modern Tokyo). Shunsho, a master of the Katsukawa school and pioneer of ukiyo-e ("pictures of the floating world"), excelled in yakusha-e—lifelike portraits of actors that blurred the line between stage and print, making celebrities accessible to everyday fans. Printed in the narrow h...