The Sakuragawa Teahouse
c. 1777
Medium
Color woodblock print; oban
Dimensions
38.1 × 26 cm (15 × 10 1/4 in.)
Classification
woodblock print
Department
Arts of Asia
Museum
Art Institute of Chicago
Accession Number
44281
Art Historical Context
Welcome to the Art Institute of Chicago's Arts of Asia collection, where Kitao Shigemasa's *The Sakuragawa Teouse* (c. 1777) captures the vibrant spirit of Edo-period Japan. This color woodblock print, in the large oban format measuring 38.1 × 26 cm, exemplifies ukiyo-e, the "pictures of the floating world genre that celebrated everyday pleasures amid urban life. Shigemasa, a illustrator and print designer active in 18th-century Tokyo, skillfully depicted scenes of leisure, theater, and nature, blending fine lines with bold colors to evoke fleeting moments of beauty. Printed using intricate w...
About the Artist
Kitao Shigemasa · 1739–1820
Kitao Shigemasa (1739–1820), born in the bustling Nihonbashi district of Edo (modern Tokyo), emerged as a pivotal figure in ukiyo-e woodblock printing during Japan's Edo period. The eldest son of the bookseller Suharaya Mohei—from a lineage of publishers—Shigemasa, originally named Kitabatake Tarōkichi, was immersed in the world of printing from youth. Largely self-taught, he later studied under t...