| Method | Woodblock (nishiki-e) |
| Artist | Utagawa Kunimori II (1827-1899) |
| Published | |
| Dimensions | Two Hanshibon sheets [each sheet ~222 x 155 mm] |
| Notes |
Series Title: Shaka hassô zoku yamato bunko: A Japanese Version of the Life of the Buddha, Continued In this print a samurai is having sex with a ghost on a bridge while battling another woman. Shunga is the term used for the body of erotic imagery produced in Japan from 1600 to 1900. The term shunga means spring pictures, a euphemism for sex, and is one of several names for erotic material produced in Japan. Shunga took different formats: painted hand scrolls, painted books, printed books and albums, and sets of prints which were sometimes sold in wrappers. As prints they are one of the genres of ukiyo-e, or Floating World prints, which also include fukeiga (landscape prints), and bijin-ga (prints of beautiful women). Most of the major ukiyo-e artists produced shunga material at some point during their careers, including Utamaro (who produced more erotic books than non-erotic books), Hokusai, and Hiroshige. Produced at the same time as the introduction of full colour woodblock printing, shunga prints and books were made using the most lavish and complicated printing techniques, including gauffrage, metallic inks, mica, complicated printed patterns, and multicolour printing using a high number of different colours. Although prolific in its number and variety, shunga should be seen as more representative of the ideals of the ukiyo, with its emphasis on mutual pleasure, rather than as an accurate representation of Japanese attitudes and practices of sexuality. Shunga present an invitation to pleasure through the bliss of lovemaking and though largely heteronormative, they portray the full gamut of couplings, married or otherwise, often surrounded by lavish settings and objects of pleasure. Utagawa Kunimori II (1827-1899) was an Edo print maker and a pupil of Utagawa Kunisada. Ex. Col.: Peter Darach Reference: Museum of Fine Arts Boston, 2007.62. 1-4 Conditio: Some rubbing and soiling lower left and right corners. |
| Framing | unmounted |
| Price | £275.00 |
| Stock ID | 53287 |