Young Boy Beseeching Hotei
Kitao Shigemasa
late 18th century
Medium
Color woodblock print; hashira-e
Dimensions
59.1 × 10.8 cm (23 1/4 × 4 1/4 in.)
Classification
woodblock print
Department
Arts of Asia
Museum
Art Institute of Chicago
Accession Number
19251
About the Artist
Kitao Shigemasa · 1739–1820
Kitao Shigemasa (1739–1820), born in the bustling Nihonbashi district of Edo (modern Tokyo), emerged as a pivotal figure in ukiyo-e woodblock printing during Japan's Edo period. The eldest son of the bookseller Suharaya Mohei—from a lineage of publishers—Shigemasa, originally named Kitabatake Tarōkichi, was immersed in the world of printing from youth. Largely self-taught, he later studied under t...