The Actor Nakamura Riko I as Moshio (?) in the Play Honda Yayoi Meoto Junrei (?), Performed at the Ichimura Theater (?) in the Seventh Month, 1778 (?)
c. 1778
Medium
Color woodblock print; hosoban
Dimensions
31.9 × 14.8 cm (12 9/16 × 5 13/16 in.)
Classification
woodblock print
Department
Arts of Asia
Museum
Art Institute of Chicago
Accession Number
22196
Art Historical Context
This vibrant woodblock print by Katsukawa Shunkō captures the kabuki actor Nakamura Riko I in the role of Moshio the play *Honda Yayoi Meoto Junrei*, performed at the Ichimura Theater in Edo (modern Tokyo) around the seventh month of 177. Rendered in the narrow *hosoban* format—measuring just 31.9 × 14.8 cm—this intimate portrait exemplifies Shunkō's mastery of *yakusha-e*, or actor prints, a hallmark of ukiyo-e ("pictures of the floating world") art. Shunkō, a leading pupil of Katsukawa Shunshō, brought dynamic realism to his depictions, emphasizing expressive poses and theatrical costumes. ...
About the Artist
Katsukawa Shunkо̄ · 1743–1812
Katsukawa Shunkō I (1743–1812), born Denjiro Kiyokawa in Edo (modern Tokyo), emerged as a pivotal figure in ukiyo-e woodblock printing. His early life remains sparsely documented, but by the late 1760s, he had begun illustrating books such as *Talks about Debut Plays* (*Kaomise shibai banashi*, 1766). Shunkō studied under the master Katsukawa Shunshō, founder and leader of the Katsukawa school, an...