Woman Holding Basket with Tabacco Pipe
1760s
Medium
Color woodblock print; hashira-e
Classification
woodblock print
Department
Arts of Asia
Museum
Art Institute of Chicago
Accession Number
7543
Art Historical Context
In the vibrant world of 18th-century Japan, Torii Kiyomitsu I's *Woman Holding Basket with Tobacco Pipe* (1760s) the essence of ukiyo-e, or "pictures of the floating." This color woodblock print, from the esteemed Torii school founded by his predecessors, exemplifies Kiyomitsu's mastery in depicting elegant women (*bijin-ga*). As a leading artist of the Edo period (1603–1868), he blended dynamic poses with refined beauty, often drawing from kabuki theater influences to infuse everyday scenes with theatrical grace. The hashira-e format—tall and narrow, designed to hang on wooden pillars in hom...
About the Artist
Torii Kiyomitsu I · 1735–1785
Japanese, 1735–1785