Complete Illustrations of Yoshiwara Parodies of Kabuki: Courtesans of the Matsubaya (Seirô kabuki yatsushiga tsukushi: Matsubaya no uchi) / Kitagawa Utamaro

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Record Details

Accession Number
1948/1.186
Title
Complete Illustrations of Yoshiwara Parodies of Kabuki: Courtesans of the Matsubaya (Seirô kabuki yatsushiga tsukushi: Matsubaya no uchi)
Artist Nationality
Japanese
Artist Life Dates
1754-1806
Object Creation Date
1798
Object Creation Place
Asia (continent)
Japan (nation)
Kanto (region)
Tokyo (metropolis)
Creation Place 1
Asia (continent)
Creation Place 2
Japan (nation)
Creation Place 3
Kanto (region)
Creation Place 4
Tokyo (metropolis)
Style/Group/Movement
ukiyo e
Inscription
Signed: Utamaro fude; Publisher's Seal: Tsuruya
Dimensions
36.7 cm x 24.8 cm (14 7/16 in. x 9 3/4 in.)
Century
18th century
Primary Object Classification
Print
Primary Object Type
color print
Physical Description
This triptych shows courtesans in a garden of Yoshiwara under flowering trees. The inscribed names allow us to identify the women as courtesans of the Matsubaya House, centered on the grand courtesan Yoso’oi (in the central triptych, with the dragon-design obi). Flanking her on either side are two shinzô apprentices, and at the right, two kamuro or child attendants.
The courtesans at left interact with a puppet of the actor Ichikawa Danjûrô VI in his role as Sukeroku. The bearded older man in the center is the villain Hige no Ikyû, Sukeroku’s rival for the affections of the courtesan Agemaki.
Subject Matter
In the realm of the kabuki theatre, nothing was what it appeared to be. Women were played by male actors, noblemen were played by the lowest caste, and stories that seemed to be set in distant history were trenchant commentaries on current affairs. The Edo audience delighted in double and triple entendre, and in the specialized know-ledge of the cognoscenti. Utamaro caters to that taste here.
At first glance, this print appears to be a conventional representation of the attractions of Yoshiwara. The inscribed names allow us to identify the women as courtesans of the Matsubaya House, centered on the grand courtesan Yoso’oi.
But this scene is more than a group portrait of a bevy of beauties; it is also a parody of a famous love triangle in the kabuki theatre. Theatre fans would recognize the puppet at left as an image of the actor Ichikawa Danjûrô VI in his role as Sukeroku, a swashbuckling avenger of the oppressed. That allows us in turn to identify the bearded older man in the center as the villain Hige no Ikyû, Sukeroku’s rival for the affections of the courtesan Agemaki.
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Technical Details

Image Size
1391 x 697
File Size
130 KB
Record
1948/1.186
Link to this Item
https://quod.lib.umich.edu/m/musart/x-1948-sl-1.186/1948_1.185-187.jpg

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https://quod.lib.umich.edu/cgi/i/image/api/manifest/musart:1948-SL-1.186:1948_1.185-187.JPG

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"Complete Illustrations of Yoshiwara Parodies of Kabuki: Courtesans of the Matsubaya (Seirô kabuki yatsushiga tsukushi: Matsubaya no uchi); Kitagawa Utamaro." In the digital collection University of Michigan Museum of Art. https://quod.lib.umich.edu/m/musart/x-1948-sl-1.186/1948_1.185-187.jpg. University of Michigan Library Digital Collections. Accessed March 28, 2024.
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