Female Ghost is an ukiyo-e woodblock print dating to 1852 by celebrated Edo period artist Utagawa Kunisada, also known as Toyokuni III. Female Ghost exemplifies the nineteenth century Japanese vogue for the supernatural and superstitious in the literary and visual arts. The print is part of the permanent collection of the Royal Ontario Museum, Toronto, Canada.
This print belongs to a genre of Japanese painting and ukiyo-e known as yūrei-zu (幽霊図), ghost pictures, which peaked in popularity in the mid-nineteenth century.[1] Literally 'faint (幽- yū) spirit (霊- rei),' yūrei is just one of several Japanese words used to refer to spirits. Other terms include: obake (お化け), yōkai (妖怪), bōrei (亡霊), shiryō/ shirei (死霊), yūki (幽鬼), yōma (妖魔), yūkai (幽怪), rei (霊), bakemono (化け物), konpaku (魂魄), henge (変化), onryō (怨霊) and yūreijinkō (幽霊人口).[2]
There is a long tradition of belief in the supernatural in Japan which relates to various influences, including such imported sources as Buddhism, Taoism and Chinese folklore. The most notable influence, however, is Shintō, a native animistic religion which presupposes that the physical world is inhabited by eight million omnipresent spirit beings.[3]
Kunisada Female Ghost print title cartouche
Yūrei-zu such as this one represent the conflation of two prevailing trends in the nineteenth century Japanese literary and visual arts: depictions of the female form, and depictions of macabre or supernatural themes. During this period, ghosts— particularly the female variety— commonly figured in folktales, as well as theatre. Vengeful spirits returning to punish their wrong-doers were a staple of kabuki, bunraku and nō dramas, and proved popular with audiences.[4] Wishing to tap into this market for the macabre, painters and woodblock artists began to create images of ghosts, as well as of kabuki actors in the roles of ghost characters.
Yakusha-e
Kunisada entered Utagawa Toyokuni's studio from a young age, and was therefore granted access to training from the finest masters of the age, as well as valuable connections to publishers, poets' associations, theatres and actors[5] He began creating yakusha-e (actor images) in 1808, and this genre was to become the mainstay of his fame and fortune.[6] So esteemed and prolific was he in this area, that he earned the epithet "Kunisada, the Portraitist of Actors (yakusha-e no Kunisada)."[7] The Tempō Reforms of 1842, which had banned depictions of geisha, oiran courtesans and kabuki actors,[8] began to be gradually repealed from the late 1840s,[9] which left Kunisada free to return to his favourite medium.
Utagawa Kunisada (Toyokuni III)
Born in 1786 in the Honjō district of Edo,[10] Utagawa Kunisada (歌川国貞) was an apprentice of Toyokuni I, whom he later succeeded as Toyokuni III (三代歌川豊国).[11][12] Although he debuted as a book illustrator in 1807 with illustrations for the series of beauties "Twelve Hours of the Courtesans" (Keisei jūnitoki),[13] his production really took off from 1809.[14] He founded his own studio in the early 1810s, and demand for his illustrations soon outstripped that for his master's.[15] Not only was he respected for his artistic talent, he was also admired for his "convivial and balanced demeanor, and [the fact that] he delivered his commissions on time."[16]
Kunisada has been described as "without a doubt... was the most prolific and successful print artist of all time."[17] Until the time of his death in 1865, he was incredibly prodigious, creating between 35 and 40 thousand designs for individual ukiyo-e prints.[18] He produced images from diverse genres, including kabuki-e (pictures of kabuki actors), bijin-ga (pictures of beautiful women), yūrei-zu (ghost pictures), sumō-e (sumo wrestler pictures), shunga (erotica) and musha-e (warrior prints).
Kunisada signature from Female Ghost print
According to modern critics, Kunisada was "a trendsetter... in tune with the tastes of urban society."[19] He is credited with infusing ukiyo-e with a sense of realism, particularly in his representations of female subjects.[20] Compared with the females idealized in prints by Utamaro, his women are shorter limbed,[21] with shorter and rounder physiques.[22] They are often posed with "slightly bent backs and knees, giving them a hunched up, stumpy look."[23] Like the female spirit in this print, they generally have longer faces with strong jaws giving an impression of "greater self-possession, if not outright aggressiveness."[24]
The print dates to 1852 and was therefore done when Kunisada was 66, before his work declined into what has been described as "gaudy and ostentatious" use of colour.[25] Critics tend to agree that Kunisada's later works suffered in quality "because of over-production and lowering of artistic standards."[26]
Female Ghost
Nanushi, date and publisher's seals from Kunisada's Female Ghost
The subject in this print corresponds to the typical depiction of female ghosts in Edo art: "a fragile form with long, flowing hair... dressed in pale or white clothing, the body below the waist tapered into nothingness."[27] The central area is dominated by the figure of a female spirit with extremely long, wildly flowing black hair, crowned by a pale blue and white decoration. Unlike in many other yūrei-zu, the ghost in this print is not disfigured or particularly ghoulish.[28] She wears a long, pale blue kimono[29] with the long sleeves (furisode - 振袖) common to the kimono of single women and female ghosts. Underneath are two inner robes, one solid red, and the other with a pale blue and white geometric design. Her kimono is fastened with a large dark blue obi tied in a disheveled bow at the front. Her kimono is closed left over right, as it would be worn by a living woman.[30]
The ghost floats, footless and with arms bent up at the elbows as is customary for ghost images of the period,[31] in flames above a grassy field. Her head is framed by pine boughs. She stares off to the right, her gaze following her outstretched right arm. Covering the palm of her right hand is a blue cloth on top of which rests a rolled up kakemono or makimono scroll. In her left hand she grasps a red cloth—possibly a furoshiki—which is tied up as a round, flat parcel. Peaking out over her right shoulder is the brown feathered fletching of a single arrow.
The image dates to 1852, the most productive year of Kunisada's career, during which he produced almost one thousand compositions.[32] The image depicts a scene from a kabuki play entitled Otogi banashi Hakata no imaori (御伽譚博多新織), which was staged at Edo's Nakamura-za theatre in 1852. The image takes its original title from the character represented: Yaeki hime no rei (八重機姫の霊 - the ghost of Princess Yaeki). Although not named on the print, the character was played by actor Onoe Baikō (尾上梅幸).[33][34]
Although it is displayed in isolation in the ROM, the print is actually the centre image from a triptych capturing different characters from the play.[35] The image on the left—to which her outstretched right arm appears to be reaching—is of Akamatsu Shigetamaru (赤松重太丸) as played by actor Ichikawa Kodanji (市川小団次).[36] In the triptych's right position, is another character from the play named Shichi[?]shirō (七?四郎). The image belongs to a series of over twenty images depicting scenes from the play,[37] including another of the Yaeki hime no rei character.[38]
Print details
Size: ōban
Format: tate-e
Title: Yaeki hime no rei (八重機姫の霊); labelled Female Ghost by ROM
Subject: Yaeki hime no rei (Ghost of Princess Yaeki) character from the kabuki play Otogibanashi Hakata no imaori
Signature: Toyokuni ga (豊国画); in red oval toshidama-in cartouche, lower right corner
Publisher: Yamamoto-ya Heikichi, Eikyūdō;[39] dark blue hanmoto mark in bottom left corner
Censor seals: 2 nanushi seals reading top to bottom Murata (村田) & Kinugasa (衣笠) indicating Murata Heiemon & Kinugasa Fusajiro[40]
Date seal: rat 6, i.e. 6th month of 1852;[41] oval in lower left corner, below censor seals
Genre: Yūrei-zu, yakusha-e
Provenance: donated to the ROM by linguist and librarian Leonard Wertheimer (1914-1998)
↑ From his accession to the name Toyokuni in 1844, Kunisada consistently signed his works Toyokuni II, refusing to accept the legitimacy of his predecessor, Toyokuni II. He is, however, always referred to as Toyokuni III (Marks 2010, 120).
Ukiyo-e is a genre of Japanese art that flourished from the 17th through 19th centuries. Its artists produced woodblock prints and paintings of such subjects as female beauties; kabuki actors and sumo wrestlers; scenes from history and folk tales; travel scenes and landscapes; flora and fauna; and erotica. The term ukiyo-e translates as 'picture[s] of the floating world'.
Utagawa Kunisada, also known as Utagawa Toyokuni III, was a Japanese ukiyo-e artist. He is considered the most popular, prolific and commercially successful designer of ukiyo-e woodblock prints in 19th-century Japan. In his own time, his reputation far exceeded that of his contemporaries, Hokusai, Hiroshige and Kuniyoshi.
Utagawa Kuniyoshi was one of the last great masters of the Japanese ukiyo-e style of woodblock prints and painting. He was a member of the Utagawa school.
Utagawa Toyokuni, also often referred to as Toyokuni I, to distinguish him from the members of his school who took over his gō (art-name) after he died, was a great master of ukiyo-e, known in particular for his kabuki actor prints. He was the second head of the renowned Utagawa school of Japanese woodblock artists, and was the artist who elevated it to the position of great fame and power it occupied for the rest of the nineteenth century.
The Utagawa school (歌川派) was one of the main schools of ukiyo-e, founded by Utagawa Toyoharu. It was the largest ukiyo-e school of its period. The main styles were bijin-ga and uki-e. His pupil, Toyokuni I, took over after Toyoharu's death and led the group to become the most famous and powerful woodblock print school for the remainder of the 19th century.
Utagawa Kunisada II was a Japanese ukiyo-e print designer, one of three to take the name "Utagawa Kunisada". He headed the Utagawa school.
Utagawa Kunimasa was a Japanese ukiyo-e artist of the Utagawa school. He was originally from Aizu in Iwashiro Province and first worked in a dye shop after arriving in Edo. It was there that he was noticed by Utagawa Toyokuni, to whom he became apprenticed.
Utagawa Yoshiiku, also known as or Ochiai Yoshiiku, was a Japanese artist of the Utagawa school.
Utagawa Kunimasu was a designer of ukiyo-e woodblock prints in Osaka who was active during the late Edo period. He was a leading producer of kamigata-e, prints from the Osaka and Kyoto areas. He is also known as Sadamasu [貞升], the artist name he used prior to Kunimasu.
Fan print with two bugaku dancers is an ukiyo-e woodblock print dating to sometime between the mid-1820s and 1844 by celebrated Edo period artist Utagawa Kunisada, also known as Toyokuni III. This print is simultaneously an example of the uchiwa-e and aizuri-e genres. It is part of the permanent collection of the Royal Ontario Museum, Toronto, Canada.
Uchiwa-e (団扇絵) are a genre of Japanese ukiyo-e woodblock print, which appear on rigid, paddle-shaped hand fans known as uchiwa (団扇). Ovoid images matching the outline of uchiwa were printed on rectangular sheets of washi rice paper, then cut along the margins and pasted onto a skeletal bamboo frame.
The two ukiyo-e woodblock prints making up View of Tempōzan Park in Naniwa are half of a tetraptych by Osaka artist Gochōtei Sadamasu. They depict a scene of crowds visiting Mount Tempō in springtime to admire its natural beauty. The sheets belong to the permanent collection of the Royal Ontario Museum, Canada.
Yūrei-zu (幽霊図) are a genre of Japanese art consisting of painted or woodblock print images of ghosts, demons and other supernatural beings. They are considered to be a subgenre of fūzokuga, "pictures of manners and customs." These types of art works reached the peak of their popularity in Japan in the mid- to late 19th century.
Ichikawa Omezō as a Pilgrim and Ichikawa Yaozō as a Samurai is an ukiyo-e woodblock print dating to around 1801 by Edo period artist Utagawa Toyokuni I. Featuring two of the most prominent actors of the day as characters in a contemporary kabuki drama, it is a classic example of the kabuki-e or yakusha-e genre. The print is part of the permanent collection of the Royal Ontario Museum, Toronto, Canada.
Eijūdō Hibino at Seventy-one is an ukiyo-e woodblock print dating to around 1799 by Edo period artist Utagawa Toyokuni I. According to its inscription, the print was produced in commemoration of the featured subject, print publisher Nishimuraya Yohachi I's, seventy-first year. The print is part of the permanent collection of the Royal Ontario Museum, Toronto, Canada.
Bust portrait of Actor Kataoka Ichizō I is an ukiyo-e woodblock print belonging to the permanent collection of the Royal Ontario Museum, Canada. The print dates to around the mid nineteenth century, and is an example of kamigata-e, prints produced in the Osaka and Kyoto areas. The ROM attributes the print to Utagawa Sadamasu II, but other institutions identify Utagawa Kunimasu—also known as Sadamasu I—as the artist.
Edo-no-Hana Meisho-e is a rare antique Japanese woodblock print art series.
Actor Ichikawa Ebijūrō as Samurai is an ukiyo-e Japanese woodblock print by Osaka-based late Edo period print designer Shunshosai Hokuchō. The print depicts a scene from a kabuki play featuring Osaka actor Ichikawa Ebijūrō (市川蝦十郎) in the role of a samurai. One impression of the print belongs to the permanent collection of the Prince Takamado Gallery of Japanese Art in the Royal Ontario Museum, Canada.
Utagawa Sadafusa was an ukiyo-e artist from the Edo period.
References
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Calza, Gian Carlo. Ukiyo-e. New York: Phaidon Press Ltd., 2003.
Foster, Michael Dylan. Pandemonium and Parade: Japanese Monsters and the Culture of Yōkai. Los Angeles: University of California Press, 2009.
Harris, Frederick. Ukiyo-e: The Art of the Japanese Print. Tokyo: Tuttle, 2010.
Hillier, J. Japanese Colour Prints. New York: Phaidon Press, 1991.
Iwasaka, Michiko and Barre Toelken. Ghosts and the Japanese: Cultural Experience in Japanese Death Legends. Logan, Utah: Utah State University Press, 1994.
Jesse, Bernd. "The Golden Age of the Utagawa School: Utagawa Kunisada and Utagawa Kuniyoshi." In Samurai Stars of the Stage and Beautiful Women: Kunisada and Kuniyoshi Masters of the Color Woodblock Print, edited by Stiftung Museum Kunstpalat, Gunda Luyken and Beat Wismer, 93–101. Düsseldorf: Hatje Cantz Verlag, 2012.
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Munsterberg, Hugo. The Japanese Print: A Historical Guide. New York: Weatherhill, 1998.
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