Benkei and Shizuka, Keisai Eisen

Artwork Overview

Keisai Eisen, Benkei and Shizuka
Keisai Eisen, Benkei and Shizuka
Keisai Eisen
Benkei and Shizuka
1829, Edo period (1600–1868)
Keisai Eisen
1790–1848
Benkei and Shizuka, 1829, Edo period (1600–1868)
Where object was made: Japan
Material/technique: color woodcut
Dimensions:
Image Dimensions Height/Width (Height x Width): 206 x 182 mm
Image Dimensions Height/Width (Height x Width): 81 1/8 x 71 5/8 in
Mat Dimensions (Height x Width): 19 x 14 in
Credit line: William Bridges Thayer Memorial
Accession number: 0000.1495
Not on display
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Images

Label texts

Archive Label 2003: This print is of a genre known as mitate, or ‘look and compare.’ In mitate prints, seemingly disparate characters or situations are juxtaposed for humorous or poetic effect. In this case, two legendary characters are shown in the guises of two famous historical poets. Benkei, the fierce-looking monk in the foreground, and Shizuka, the elegant woman behind him, are characters in stories related to the semi-legendary twelfth-century hero Yoshitsune. Shizuka was Yoshitsune’s lover, and Benkei his loyal retainer. These roles caused them to clash on occasion. This relationship inspired the artist Eisen to present Shizuka and Benkei as two famous rival poets from the Heian period (794-1185), Ono no Komachi and Ōtomo no Kuronushi respectively. An inkstone and inkstick rest in front of Benkei, and he holds a brush and paper. While Shizuka appears merely pensive, Benkei’s intense stare and the agitated folds of his robe make him appear frustrated in the midst of composing his poem.

Exhibitions

Brosseau Center for Learning: Art & Culture of Japan
2023
Surimono Prints from the Collection of the Spencer Museum of Art
1991

Citations

Keyes, Roger, and Carol Shankel, Project Director. Surimono: Privately Published Japanese Prints in the Spencer Museum of Art. Tokyo, New York, San Francisco: Kodansha International Ltd, 1984.