Young Woman Riding a Phoenix
ca. 1766
Medium
Woodblock print; ink and color on paper
Dimensions
Horizontal chūban; Image: 7 15/16 × 11 1/8 in. (20.2 × 28.3 cm)
Classification
Prints
Culture & Period
Japan · Edo period (1615–1868)
Department
Asian Art
Museum
Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York, NY
Credit
The Howard Mansfield Collection, Purchase, Rogers Fund, 1936
Accession Number
JP2436
Rights
Public Domain
Tags
About this artwork
This woodblock print; ink and color on paper work by Suzuki Harunobu, titled 'Young Woman Riding a Phoenix' and created ca. 1766, represents an important example of artistic production from this period. Suzuki Harunobu's practice contributed to the broader artistic traditions of the time, demonstrating the technical skills and aesthetic sensibilities characteristic of Asian Art artworks in museum collections. The piece reflects the cultural and artistic values of its era, serving as a document o...
Art Historical Context
Suzuki Harunobu's *Young Woman Riding a Phoenix* (ca. 1766) is a captivating woodblock print from Japan's Edo period (16151868), showcasing the artist's pioneering role in ukiyo-e, or "pictures of the floating." This horizontal chūban format—measuring about 8 by 11 inches—was ideal for intimate viewing, with vibrant ink and color on paper achieved through the innovative nishiki-e, Harunobu's breakthrough in full-color printing around 1765. As one of the first masters to produce such multicolored works, he elevated the medium from black-and-white benizuri-e to richly layered brocade-like images, blending technical precision with poetic elegance. The print depicts a graceful young woman astride a majestic phoenix, a mythical bird symbolizing virtue, renewal, and imperial grace in Japanese lore. Harunobu, renowned for his bijin-ga (images of beautiful women), infuses the fantastical scene with serene beauty and subtle eroticism, reflecting Edo urban culture's fascination with femininity, fantasy, and the ephemeral pleasures of life. Produced amid Tokyo's (then Edo) booming print industry, it captures the era's aesthetic refinement and social vibrancy. Housed in the Metropolitan Museum of Art's Asian Art collection since 1936, this piece from The Howard Mansfield Collection preserves Harunobu's legacy, inviting visitors to ponder the interplay of myth and mortality in 18th-century Japan.
About the Artist
Suzuki Harunobu · 1725–1770
Suzuki Harunobu (c. 1725-1770) was a Japanese ukiyo-e artist who revolutionized woodblock printing by developing nishiki-e—full-color prints using multiple woodblocks—in 1765. Before Harunobu, Japanese prints were limited to two or three colors; his innovation unleashed the entire artist's palette, transforming ukiyo-e into the vibrant art form that would later captivate Western artists from Manet...