Visitors to Enoshima
c. 1789
Medium
Color woodblock prints; oban triptych
Dimensions
37.4 × 24.5 cm (right sheet), 37.5 × 25.1 cm (center sheet), 37.2 × 24.2 cm (left sheet)
Classification
woodblock print
Department
Arts of Asia
Museum
Art Institute of Chicago
Accession Number
21551
Art Historical Context
Step into the vibrant world of Edo-period Japan with *Visitors to Enoshima* (c. 1789), a stunning oban triptych by Torii Kiyonaga. This color woodblock print, composed of three sheets measuring about 37 cm tall each, depicts elegant figures strolling along the shores of Enoshima, a picturesque island shrine site near Kamakura renowned for its scenic beauty and spiritual allure. Kiyonaga masterfully captures the leisurely atmosphere of a popular pilgrimage destination, where urbanites escaped city life for sea breezes and sacred visits. As a leading figure in the ukiyo-e tradition—"pictures of...
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...