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Courtesan in Moonlight
Courtesan in Moonlight

Courtesan in Moonlight

Dateca. 1825-30
Maker Keisai Eisen Japanese, 1790 - 1848
Label TextThe extravaganza of this courtesan’s fashion is on full display in this painting. Her multiple layers of kimono are finished with an outer robe decorated with a striking design of a lion with a branch of peony in its mouth. A bright orange oversized obi sash is loosely draped at her front, and her hairpins are equally oversized, as if to attract attention. A bare foot is revealed under the red kimono, subtle but suggestive.
Object number2015.17.3
ProvenanceCollection of Mary and Allan Kollar, Seattle, Washington; to Seattle Art Museum, Seattle, Washington, 2015
Exhibition HistorySeattle, Washington, Seattle Asian Art Museum, Fleeting Beauty: Japanese Woodblock Prints, Apr. 1 - July 4, 2010. Text by Catherine Roche. Cat. no. 41, reproduced p. 64. Seattle, Washington, Seattle Art Museum, Nature and Pattern in Japanese Design, Dec. 21, 2013 - Dec. 2014. Seattle, Washington, Seattle Asian Art Museum, Boundless: Stories of Asian Art, Feb. 8, 2020 - ongoing [on view July 30, 2022 - Jan. 8, 2023].
Credit LineGift of Mary and Allan Kollar
Dimensions33 3/8 x 14 1/8 in. (84.8 x 35.9 cm)
MediumInk, color and gold pigment on silk
Photo: Colleen Kollar Zorn
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ca. 1800
Object number: 2015.17.1
Photo: Spike Mafford
Katsushika Hoku'un
19th century
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Courtesan and Attendant Selecting Kimono Designs
Ukiyo-e School
ca. 1700
Object number: 61.81
Oblong dish
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late 18th - early 19th century
Object number: 64.100
Photo: Eduardo Calderon
Sano Kosui
1930s
Object number: 2010.41.69
Photo: Spike Mafford
Japanese
early 18th century
Object number: 91.105
Courtesan seated on a balcony
Kitagawa Tsukimaro
ca. 1810
Object number: 63.50
Photo: Scott Leen
Nagayama Ko'in
Object number: 2023.11.106.a-b
Reclining Courtesan Reading
School of Hokusai
ca. 1850
Object number: 39.201
National Research Institute of Cultural Heritage, Republic of Korea
Yi Gong U
19th century
Object number: 90.1
Photo: Scott Leen
Mori Ippo
Object number: 2023.11.96
Photo: Susan A. Cole
Japanese
late 14th century
Object number: 92.8