The Sixth Month (Minazuki): Nioteru of the Ogiya, from the series "Models for Fashion: New Designs as Fresh as Young Leaves (Hinagata wakana no hatsu moyo)"
c. 1777/78
Medium
Color woodblock print; oban
Dimensions
29.3 × 24.8 cm (11 1/2 × 9 3/4 in.)
Classification
woodblock print
Department
Arts of Asia
Museum
Art Institute of Chicago
Accession Number
21364
Art Historical Context
In the vibrant world of 18th-century Edo Japan (modern-day Tokyo), Isoda Koryūsai captured the fleeting elegance of urban fashion in his woodblock print *The Sixth Month (Minazuki): Nioteru of the Ogiya*, from the series *Models for Fashion: New Designs as Fresh as Young Leaves (Hinagata wakana no hatsu moyo)*, created around 1777–78. Koryūsai, a master of the ukiyo-e ("pictures of the floating world") genre, specialized in bijin-ga—depictions of beautiful women—often showcasing courtesans like Nioteru from the famed Ogiya pleasure house. This oban-sized print (about 11½ × 9¾ inches) highlight...