Yashima, from the series "Pictures of No Performances (Nogaku Zue)"

Art Historical Context

Step into the ethereal world of Japanese Noh theater with *Yashima*, a captivating color woodblock print by Tsukioka Kôgyo from his renowned series *Pictures of Noances (Nogaku Z)*, created in 1898. Kôgyo, a master of the late ukiyo-e tradition, in documenting the graceful, masked performances of Noh—one of Japan's oldest theatrical forms, dating back to the th century. This print a scene from the Noh play *Yashima*, likely evoking the dramatic tale of a ghostly warrior, blending supernatural elements with profound emotional depth. Printed during Japan's Meiji era, when Western influences wer...

About the Artist

Tsukioka Kôgyo · 1869–1927

Tsukioka Kōgyo (1869–1927), born Hanyū Bennosuke in Tokyo's bustling Nihonbashi district as the second son of an innkeeper family, navigated a path from humble origins to mastery in Japanese printmaking. After his father's early death, he was raised by his mother's Sakamaki family and apprenticed in pottery painting under his uncle, a ceramics exporter in Yokohama. He briefly attended the Tokyo Sc...