The Actors Arashi Ryuzo II and Ichikawa Komazo III, from a pentaptych of eleven actors celebrating the festival of the shrine of the Soga brothers
1788
Medium
Color woodblock print; hosoban, pentaptych (first sheet from the right)
Dimensions
31.1 × 13.8 cm (12 1/4 × 5 7/16 in.)
Classification
woodblock print
Department
Arts of Asia
Museum
Art Institute of Chicago
Accession Number
86461
Art Historical Context
Torii Kiyonaga, a leading figure in the ukiyo-e tradition during Japan's Edo period, masterfully captured the vibrant world of kabuki theater in this 1788 color woodblock print. Titled *The Actors Arashi Ryuz II and Ichikawa Kom III*, it forms the rightmost sheet of a rare pentaptych hosoban—a narrow, vertical format (31.1 × 13.8 cm) that, when assembled with four others, depicts eleven actors joyfully celebrating the festival at the shrine of the Soga brothers. This legendary duo from kabuki lore avenged their father's murder, making their shrine a site of popular pilgrimage and theatrical ho...
About the Artist
Torii Kiyonaga · 1752–1815
Torii Kiyonaga, born Sekiguchi Shinsuke in 1752 in Uraga, Sagami Province, was the son of an Edo bookseller who owned tenements near a bustling fish market. At age 14 in 1765, he began his apprenticeship under Torii Kiyomitsu, the third-generation head of the prestigious Torii school of ukiyo-e, renowned for kabuki theater illustrations and signage. Adopted into the Torii family, Kiyonaga succeede...