The Actor Nakamura Nakazō I in the Role of a Daimyo's Retainer

Date1780-85

Maker Katsukawa Shunkō Japanese, 1743 - 1812

Label TextShunko depicted Nakamura Nakazo, a well-known leading man, at a climactic moment in a kabuki drama. His face fixed, his legs wide, Nakazo impresses the audience-and print-with his resolute stance. Red eye makeup worn over a thick layer of white rice-powder face paint expresses his virility while heightening the dramatic effect.

Object number2013.31.8

ProvenanceCollection of P. Blondeau (d. 1926), Paris, France; [Thomas French Fine Art, Fairlawn, Ohio]; 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. 16, reproduced p. 39. 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: 12 1/4 x 6 in. (31.1 x 15.2 cm)

MediumWoodblock print; ink and color on paper