Konosato of Echizenya composing a letter, Suzuki Harunobu

Exhibition Label: "Nature/Natural," Feb-2011, Kris Ercums Harunobu is associated with the popularization of the color printing process nishiki-e (“brocade pictures”) and is well known for his graceful depictions of petite figures. These woodblock prints come from a single album in his book illustration tour de force, a five-volume set of the beautiful courtesans in Edo’s pleasure district. Calligraphic script names each woman and emblems on her sleeves identify the house to which she belonged. Many courtesans cultivated skills of great refinement, and each page of this series depicts a seated woman engaged in a solitary pastime, such as writing a letter, playing a musical instrument, or appreciating flowers. The 17-syllable poems accompanying these figures allude to snow, suggesting that these prints all belong to the 5th album that is dedicated to winter. The four other albums in the set similarly concentrate on seasonal themes (vol. 1, spring; vol. 2-3, summer; vol. 4, autumn), playing on the traditional Asian theme of equating the ephemeral beauty of women with the transitory seasons of the natural world. Archive Label 1988: The art of portraying bijin (beautiful women) has had a long tradition in Japan, with courtesans as the most common subject. Often highly trained and educated, these women wielded considerable power within their limited world of the pleasure quarters. Since they also represented the height of fashion, print designers focused on the courtesans' elaborate hairstyles and gorgeous robes. The woodblock prints here depict three different views of idealized womanhood dictated by the changing tastes of the day. Harunobu's courtesan composing a letter is a frail, childlike woman who kneels before a writing box containing ink brushes and an inkstone. Utamaro's haughty courtesan is the antithesis of Harunobu's sweet maiden. The monumental, full-scale figure fills the entire space of the picture as she lazily stretches in total self-absorption. Her hairstyle is more complex, and her robe is rendered in bold, sweeping lines that create an elegant design. Kunisada's beauties strolling beneath plum trees in the third print assume less idealized proportions, but wear by far the most elaborate costumes. The use of intense colors with silver and gold accents contributes to the suptuousness of the kimono and headdresses.