The actors Ichikawa Danjuro VII as Mongaku and Matsumoto Koshiro V as Fudo Myoo
c. 1829/32
Medium
Color woodblock print; vertical shikishiban diptych, surimono
Dimensions
43.9 × 20.2 cm (17 5/16 × 8 in.)
Classification
woodblock print
Department
Arts of Asia
Museum
Art Institute of Chicago
Accession Number
81304
Art Historical Context
This striking color woodblock print by Utagawa Kunisada I (also known as Toyokuni III) captures two celebrated kabuki actors in powerful, mythological roles. Created around 1829–32, it portrays Ichikawa Danjuro VII as the ascetic monk Mongaku and Matsumoto Koshiro V as Fudo Myoo, the fierce Buddhist deity. Kunisada, one of the leading ukiyo-e artists of his generation, specialized in actor prints that brought the excitement of the kabuki stage to a wide audience. The work is a vertical shikishiban diptych in the surimono format—a luxurious, privately commissioned print often produced for poet...
About the Artist
Utagawa Kunisada I (Toyokuni III) · 1786–1864
Utagawa Kunisada I, also known as Toyokuni III (1786–1865), was born Sumida Shōgorō in the Honjo district of Edo (modern Tokyo) into a family that operated a hereditary ferry-boat service, providing stability after his father's early death. Displaying prodigious talent in drawing from childhood, he became an apprentice to the master Utagawa Toyokuni I around 1801 at age fifteen, entering the prest...