Act Four (Yodanme), from the series Treasury of the Forty-Seven Loyal Retainers (Chushingura)

Date1801-02

Maker Kitagawa Utamaro Japanese, 1754 - 1806

Label TextThe drama Chushingura, originally created for the puppet theater, was a wildly popular kabuki play. It was also the subject of innumerable print series. Its eleven acts provided a cast of colorful characters and exciting events tailormade for the stage and the woodblock print. Here, Utamaro juxtaposes episodes from the play-illustrated in square insets at the upper right of the prints-with commonplace scenes of daily life. --Catherine Roche, Curatorial Associate, 2010

Object number2017.23.14

ProvenanceCollection of Mary and Allan Kollar, Seattle, Washington; to Seattle Art Museum, Seattle, Washington, 2017

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. 30, reproduced p. 53. 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., pp. 75, 101, reproduced pl. 39 and on cover.

Credit LineGift of Mary and Allan Kollar, in honor of the 75th Anniversary of the Seattle Art Museum

DimensionsSheet: 15 1/4 x 10 1/2 in. (38.7 x 26.7 cm)

MediumWoodblock print; ink and color on paper