The Actor Onoe Matsutake I in the Role of a Young Woman of Fashion
Date1780s
Maker
Ippitsusai Bunchō
Japanese, active ca. 1765-92
Label TextIppitsusai Buncho is an idiosyncratic figure in the ukiyo-e world, channeling influences from Harunobu and Shunsho but possessing a distinctive style all his own. The arched pose of the tall, improbably slender figure reflects the elegance of Buncho at the peak of his craft. The kimono-clad figure is an onnagata, an actor who specializes in female roles. Here he adopts the mien of a stylish young lady.
Object number2013.31.9
ProvenanceCollection of Henri Vever (1854-1942), France; [Sotheby’s, London, Highly Important Japanese Prints, Illustrated Books and Drawings from the Henri Vever Collection: Part I, Mar. 26, 1974, lot no. 103]; [Israel Goldman Japanese Prints, London, England]; purchased from gallery by Allan Kollar, Seattle, Washington, 2005; to Seattle Art Museum, Seattle, Washington, 2013
Photo CreditPhoto: Colleen Kollar Zorn
Exhibition HistorySeattle, Washington, Seattle Asian Art Museum, Fleeting Beauty: Japanese Woodblock Prints, Apr. 1 - July 4, 2010. Text by Catherine Roche. Cat. no. 17, reproduced p. 40.
Seattle, Washington, Seattle Asian Art Museum, Renegade Edo: Japanese Prints and Toulouse-Lautrec, July 21 - Dec. 3, 2023. Text by Xiaojin Wu. No cat. no., p. 101.Credit LineGift of Mary and Allan Kollar, in honor of the 75th Anniversary of the Seattle Art Museum
DimensionsSheet size: 11 7/8 x 5 5/8 in. (30.2 x 14.3 cm)
MediumWoodblock print; ink and color on paper
Katsukawa Shunkō
1780-85
Object number: 2013.31.8
Kitagawa Utamaro
ca. 1795
Object number: 2017.23.5
Katsukawa Shunshō
ca. 1780s
Object number: 2013.31.7
Utagawa Toyokuni
ca. 1800-05
Object number: 2014.32.8
Isoda Koryūsai
ca. 1775
Object number: 2013.31.6
Kitagawa Utamaro
ca. 1800
Object number: 2017.23.1
Utagawa Kunisada II
August 1857
Object number: 98.53.58
Utagawa Kunisada II
May 1852
Object number: 98.53.62
Utagawa Kunisada II
March 1854
Object number: 98.53.63
Utagawa Kunisada II
February 1862
Object number: 98.53.69