Category Archives: Kuniyoshi

Kabuki ! – Yakusha-e in Nineteenth Century Japan

Posted on March 17, 2021 by toshidama

The new show of Japanese Woodblock Prints at The Toshidama Gallery takes as its theme this month, the vast arena of kabuki prints, known in Japan as Yakusha-e. This is a very rich area indeed. The prints in the show … Continue reading →

Posted in Japanese prints, japanese woodblock prints, kabuki theatre, Kunichika, Kunisada, Kuniyoshi, ukiyo-e, yakusha-e | Tagged , , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Japanese Prints and the Tradition of Story Telling

Posted on September 17, 2020 by toshidama

Complex narrative lies at the heart of traditional Japanese culture. From the very beginnings, the Japanese were devoted to the structure of sophisticated narrative. The first true novel, the 11th century Genji monogatari – “The Tale of the Genji”- is … Continue reading →

Posted in 47 Ronin, Chushingura, Japanese prints, japanese woodblock prints, kabuki theatre, Kunichika, Kunisada, Kuniyoshi, ukiyo-e, Uncategorized | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , | 2 Comments

Tales Of Old Japan

Posted on June 29, 2020 by toshidama

The new selection of prints online at Toshidama Japanese Prints takes inspiration from a book published by an English aristocrat in 1871. They are a random collection of folk tales, myths and stories from before the great modernisation of Japan … Continue reading →

Posted in Japanese prints, japanese woodblock prints, Kunichika, Kunisada, Kuniyoshi, Lord Redesdale, Otokodate, ukiyo-e, Uncategorized | Tagged , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Bandits and Warlords. Fighting men in Japanese prints.

Posted on September 27, 2019 by toshidama

The Toshidama Gallery is showing a collection of prints featuring aggressive and violent folk heroes and warlords. The selection looks at how the populace of Edo expressed their frustration with the government and with the increasingly corrupt samurai class. As … Continue reading →

Posted in Asian Art, Floating World, Japanese Art, Japanese gangster, Japanese prints, japanese woodblock prints, kabuki theatre, Kunisada, Kuniyoshi, Male Tragedy, Otokodate, Suikoden, yoshitoshi | Tagged , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Bandits, Brigands and Warlords.

Posted on September 27, 2019 by toshidama

Kuniyoshi, The 108 Heroes of the Popular Suikoden: Du Qian, the Sky Toucher, 1827 Perhaps we should look at these tremendous Japanese prints of fighting men – heroic or tragic figures… bound as they are in myth and history – … Continue reading →

Posted in Hokusai, Japanese prints, japanese woodblock prints, kabuki theatre, Kuniyoshi, musha-e, Otokodate, ukiyo-e, Uncategorized, yoshitoshi | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Collecting Japanese Woodblock Prints

Posted on June 23, 2019 by toshidama

Prints From the collection of Ruth Muschel and Gillies McKenna at Wolfson College, Oxford. We attended the opening of an exhibition of Japanese prints from the private collection of ukiyo-e belonging to Ruth Muschel and Gillies McKenna at Wolfson College, … Continue reading →

Posted in Art Collector, Floating World, Hiroshige, Japanese Art, Japanese prints, japanese woodblock prints, Kunisada, Kuniyoshi, ukiyo-e, ukiyo-e art, Uncategorized | Leave a comment

Kuni, Kuni, Kuni – Three Japanese Woodblock Artists of Decadence

Posted on October 26, 2018 by toshidama

Kunichika, Nakamura Shikan IV as Daihachi and Onoe Kikugoro V as Tatsugoro, 1890 The prefix ‘Kuni’ started life as the suffix ‘kuni’ in the name Toyokuni. The artist who created the catchy brand name Toyokuni I, was the successful woodblock … Continue reading →

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The Utagawa Lineage in Japanese Prints

Posted on July 6, 2018 by toshidama

A Basic ‘Family Tree’ of the Utagawa School. The picture above is an over simplified ‘family tree’ of the principal individuals in the Utagawa School of Japanese woodblock print artists. Toshidama Gallery has a significant online presence and we are … Continue reading →

Posted in Hiroshige, Japanese prints, japanese woodblock prints, Kunichika, Kunisada, Kuniyoshi, Toyokuni I, Toyokuni III, ukiyo-e, ukiyo-e art, utagawa, yoshitoshi | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

History and Romance in Japanese Prints – 4 Artists at the Toshidama Gallery

Posted on January 26, 2018 by toshidama

Kunichika, Ichi-no-Tani Futaba Gunki, 1864. The scholars of the early twentieth century derided the great artists and prints of nineteenth century Japan. The assessment of artists such as Kuniyoshi and Kunisada rested on their perceived decadence… (moral or cultural decline … Continue reading →

Posted in Hiroshige, Japanese prints, japanese woodblock prints, Kunichika, Kunisada, Kuniyoshi, ukiyo-e, utagawa | Tagged , , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Tattoo You – The Continuing Debt To Ukiyo-e

Posted on September 29, 2017 by toshidama

The newspapers have been very full of risque images from the 13th International London Tattoo Convention . It’s a huge event, tattoos cover any number of different body types, body parts and genders and there seems no end to the … Continue reading →

Posted in Floating World, Hokusai, Japanese Art, japanese woodblock prints, Kunisada, Kuniyoshi, Tattoo Art, Toshidama Gallery., ukiyo-e, ukiyo-e art | Tagged , , | Leave a comment