Kunichika (1835 - 1900 )
Kunichika Toyohara was one the most important woodblock print artists of the Meiji period (1868-1912). Best known for his dramatic actor portraits (yakusha-e.), Kunichika ushered ukiyo-e into a new era of color printmaking. At his hand, the floating world came to life in rich purples and deep reds. Even as new artistic mediums became popular in Japan, Kunichika championed the genres and aesthetics of ukiyo-e in vivid color.
Born as Yasohachi Oshima in 1835, Kunichika's father was a public bathhouse proprietor in Kyobashi district, home to many artists and merchants. He changed assumed his mother's family name, Arakawa, during his youth. Kunichika began his artistic training around the age of 12 under Chikanobu Ichiosai Toyohara. Roughly two years later, Kunichika apprenticed under Kunisada Utagawa (1786-1865) and began to produce actor prints in the 1850s. Though he worked in the style of the Utagawa school, he never used the Utagawa name. Kunichika took his artist name from names of his two teachers. After more than a decade in Kunisada's studio, Kunichika's popularity rose as he stepped out as an independent artist in the 1860s and 1870s.
Though Kunichika produced some bijin-ga (pictures of beautiful women), historical prints, and journalistic illustrations, his passion lay with the kabuki theater. From sprawling triptychs to okubi-e (large-head portraits) rich in emotion, Kunichika established himself as the leading artist of yakusha-e (actor prints). He immersed himself in the kabuki world, regularly spending time backstage, sketching the actors, socializing with the theatrical figures, and watching the plays. This wealth of personal experience in the theater lent an intimacy to his bold designs. Kunichika's notable students include Chikanobu Yoshu (1838-1912) and Chikashige Morikawa (fl. 1869-1882).
Meiji Period Prints (1868-1912)
Meiji-period woodblock prints reflect an era of change. In 1853, the arrival of Commodore Perry’s black ships brought over 250 years of Japanese isolation to an abrupt end. The following year, as Japan engaged in international trade, Yokohama-e (Yokohama pictures) captured an influx of unfamiliar peoples, places and things entering Japan through Yokohama harbor. By 1868, the Imperial line attained control of the country under Emperor Meiji, terminating the feudal rule of the Tokugawa Shogunate and dissipating the culture of the floating world. Under the emperor, national modernization progressed rapidly. From Western-style clothes and pastimes, to exciting new inventions from overseas, Japan absorbed the massive influx of the foreign and developed a distinctly Japanese modern identity. While photography and lithography gained popularity at this time, the woodblock print continued to serve as a powerful medium. Meiji period artists made sense of a transitioning world with a familiar medium.
54 Products
Kunichika
Sawamura Tanosuke III as Stepdaughter Kakezara
JPR-209139
Kunichika
Miuraya Scene: Sukeroku and Courtesan Agemaki
JPR-97139
Kunichika
Introducing Two Kabuki Plays at the Nakamura Theater
JP110821
Kunichika
Ichikawa Danjuro as Kumagai Naozane and Onoe Kikugoro as Taira no Atsumori at the Ichinotani Battle
JP1-21196
Kunichika
Ushiwaka-maru and Benkei on the Gojo Bridge
JP110819
Kunichika
Kabuki Actors Onoe Kikugoro, Kataoka Gado and Bando Kakyo
JP1-51184
Kunichika
Onoe Kikugoro and Bando Mitsugoro as Courtesans with Nakamura Juzaburo and Bando Minosuke
JP110830
Kunichika
Kyogen: Actors Onoe Matsusuke, Nakamura Fukusuke, and Onoe Kikugoro
JP1-51190
Kunichika
Scene from the Kabuki Play Chujo-hime Taima Engi
JP110452
Kunichika
Ichikawa Gonjuro and Ichikawa Danjuro at the Bath from the Play Kiwametsuki Banzui Chobei
JP110817
Kunichika
Kabuki Scene from the Play Oshu Adachigahara
JP110844
Kunichika
Kabuki Actors Ichikawa Sadanji and Ichikawa Danjuro
JP110824