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Utagawa Kuniyoshi, also known as Ichiyûsai, was an ukiyo-e artist who worked in a variety of genres, but he was most well known for his kabuki scenes, warriors, and fantasy prints. He showed talent at a young age, and was admitted to be a pupil of the ukiyo-e print master Utagawa Toyokuni. He completed his apprenticeship in 1814 and set out to be an independent artist, but he did not gain popularity until the late 1820s. His work was initially disregarded by 20th-century American collectors, but eventually became highly sought-after because of its clear influence on modern Japanese comics and animation.Label Type
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Utagawa was most well-known for his kabuki prints, and this triptych (three prints that together create one composition) depicts a scene from the play Sumidagawa Tsui no Kagamon. Kabuki is a stylized, elaborate form of Japanese theater that was popular during the Edo period, and prints like these originally could have been bought as souvenirs. The set, costumes, and cartouches with the characters’ names would make the play recognizable to buyers.