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Photo: Colleen Kollar Zorn
Young Man Catching the Sleeve of a Court Lady
Photo: Colleen Kollar Zorn

Young Man Catching the Sleeve of a Court Lady

Dateca. 1766-68
Label TextIn the Heian period (794-1185), a court lady would seek to catch the attention of a potential suitor by allowing her robes to trail out from beneath a bamboo blind. The classic work of Japanese literature, Lady Murasaki's Tale of Genji, frequently employed this device, and in visual art it became a standard signifier for the 10th-century romance. In this print, the sweet-faced girl's hairstyle and red skirt denote the Heian era, but her outer robe is an anachronism. The young man's looks are entirely contemporary.
Object number2013.31.5
Provenance[Sebastian Izzard, New York]; purchased from gallery by Allan Kollar, Seattle, Washington, 2009; 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. 13, reproduced p. 36.
Credit LineGift of Mary and Allan Kollar, in honor of the 75th Anniversary of the Seattle Art Museum
Dimensions10 3/4 x 7 7/8 in. (27.3 x 20 cm)
MediumWoodblock print; ink and color on paper
Photo: Colleen Kollar Zorn
Young Man, Young Woman, and a Boy Pass in Front of Santo Kyoden's Smoking Shop
ca. 1800
Object number: 2017.23.1
Photo: Colleen Kollar Zorn
Hands inside the Sleeves (Futokorode), from the series Eight Views of Tea Stalls in Celebrated Places (Meisho koshikake hakkei)
ca. 1795-96
Object number: 2017.23.6
Photo: Colleen Kollar Zorn
Lady Wearing an Eboshi, on High Geta and Holding an Umbrella
ca. 1798-1800
Object number: 2014.32.6
Photo: Colleen Kollar Zorn
The Actor Onoe Matsutake I in the Role of a Young Woman of Fashion
1780s
Object number: 2013.31.9
Photo: Susan Cole
Picture of the Middle Class (Chubon no zu), from the series Three Ranks of Young Women according to Their Fashions (Fuzoku sandan musume)
ca. 1795
Object number: 2017.23.5
Photo: Beth Mann
Young lady (named Oshima) at the house called Banya
1844-53
Object number: 53.134
Photo: Colleen Kollar Zorn
Woman Sewing while a Man Watches
ca. 1800
Object number: 2014.32.4
Image Not Available for A Young Girl with Her Client
A Young Girl with Her Client
ca. 1710s
Object number: 2011.40.1
Three Heian Court Ladies Enjoying Autumn Foliage
Three Heian Court Ladies Enjoying Autumn Foliage
17th century
Object number: 46.195
Photo: William Wickett
South Wind, Clear Dawn (Gaifu kaisei), from the series Thirty-six Views of Mount Fuji (Fugaku sanjurokkei)
Katsushika Hokusai
ca. 1830-32
Object number: 2010.15
Image Not Available for Tago Beach near Eijiri on the Tokaido Highway, Simplified View (Tokaido Eijiri tago-no-ura ryakuzu), from the series Thirty-six Views of Mount Fuji (Fugaku sanjurokkei)
Tago Beach near Eijiri on the Tokaido Highway, Simplified View (Tokaido Eijiri tago-no-ura ryakuzu), from the series Thirty-six Views of Mount Fuji (Fugaku sanjurokkei)
Katsushika Hokusai
ca. 1830-33
Object number: 2010.47.2
Image Not Available for Rainstorm beneath the Summit (Sanka haku-u), from the series Thirty-six Views of Mount Fuji (Fugaku sanjurokkei)
Rainstorm beneath the Summit (Sanka haku-u), from the series Thirty-six Views of Mount Fuji (Fugaku sanjurokkei)
Katsushika Hokusai
ca. 1830-32
Object number: 2010.47.3