Woman About to Write a Poem
c. 1824
Medium
Color woodblock print with metallic pigments; surimono shikishiban
Dimensions
21.3 × 18.3 cm (8 7/16 × 7 1/4 in.)
Classification
woodblock print
Department
Arts of Asia
Museum
Art Institute of Chicago
Accession Number
80963
Rights
Public Domain
About this artwork
The figure of a sumptuously attired woman takes up almost the entire composition of this print. She wears a layered kimono, the outer robe of which has a lavish design of plums, a winding stream, and Chinese characters. She is an educated woman as evidenced by the books piled on the lacquer cabinet behind her. She looks at a blank sheet of decorated paper, brush in hand, ready to compose a poem. Above her, the poems speak of the art of poetry as practiced by animals, whereby the animals represen...
About the Artist
Yashima Gakutei · 1786–1868
Yashima Gakutei (c. 1786–1868), born in Osaka as the illegitimate son of a Tokugawa shogunate samurai named Hirata, adopted the name from his mother's subsequent marriage into the Yashima clan. Little is documented about his early years beyond these familial ties, but he pursued artistic training under the esteemed ukiyo-e masters Totoya Hokkei and Katsushika Hokusai, absorbing their precision in ...