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Utagawa Toyokuni

Sawamura Sojuro III (1753-1801) as Ume no Yoshibei (sandai (III) Sawamura Sojuro Ume no Yoshibei), ca. 1796

Description

Maker

  • Izumiya Ichibei (Kansendō), Japanese, publisher
  • Utagawa Toyokuni, 1769-1825, Japanese

Title

Sawamura Sojuro III (1753-1801) as Ume no Yoshibei (sandai (III) Sawamura Sojuro Ume no Yoshibei)

Year

ca. 1796

Medium

Polychrome wood block print

Materials/Techniques

Materials

  • ink and color

Techniques

  • wood block,
  • woodcut

Supports

  • paper

Dimensions

Image: 37.2 x 25.4 cm (14 5/8 x 10 inches)

Signature / Inscription / Marks

Toyokuni ga

Place

Japan

Type

  • Works on Paper,
  • Prints

Credit

Bequest of Isaac C. Bates

Object Number

13.1404

Exhibition History

Exhibition History

Edo Theater

January 18 - May 18, 2008

The performance by Sawamura Sōjūrō III (1753-1801) as Ume no Yoshibei set the standard for subsequent actors playing the role. He debuted it at the Kiri Theater, January 1796, in the play Sumida no haru geisha katagi by Namiki Gohei. The character is an otokodate, a type of street tough glorified on the kabuki stage as a hero of the common people. The blue area on this actor's forehead is exposed skin, a convention used in depicting kabuki actors, who had to shave their heads. This is the left panel of a diptych whose right panel shows Segawa Kikunojo III (1751-1810) as Chokichi.

Courtesans and Actors

September 20 - December 8, 1996

Kabuki Actor Prints from the Late Eighteenth Century

September 14 - November 4, 1990

On Stage

May 13 - September 4, 1988

Japanese Prints of the Kabuki

September 5 - November 23, 1986

Kabuki

Use

The images on this website can enable discovery and collaboration and support new scholarship, and we encourage their use. This object is in the public domain (CC0 1.0). This object is Sawamura Sojuro III (1753-1801) as Ume no Yoshibei (sandai (III) Sawamura Sojuro Ume no Yoshibei) with the accession number of 13.1404. To request high-resolution files or new photography, please send an email to imagerequest@risd.edu and include your name and the object's accession number.

Feedback

We view our online collection as a living documents, and our records are frequently revised and enhanced. If you have additional information or have spotted an error, please send feedback to curatorial@risd.edu.

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