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Introduction

Kunisada's Twelve Months

Images of Women in Japanese Woodblock Prints
March 7 - May 3, 1997

Illustrations of the twelve months were introduced into the repertory of print subjects in the eighteenth century by Okumura Masanobu (1686-1764), a highly innovative Japanese printmaker. From the beginning, these works emphasized scenery and therefore contrasted with the boldly isolated portraits of actors and courtesans so typical of the medium. By the mid-nineteenth century, Kunisada's renditions of the subject had expanded to occupy three sheets of paper in triptych format.

This set of The Twelve Months by Kunisada is striking in the monumentality of its compositions and the intricate detail of its surfaces. Each month illustrates a seasonal activity or holiday observance, performed in most cases by women. In the emphasis on domestic occupations and the conscious projection of narrowly defined female roles, these prints indicate how women were perceived within mid-nineteenth-century Japanese society.

The Asian Art Department gratefully acknowledges the assistance of Zoey Smith, an undergraduate at Rhode Island School of Design, whose research has been incorporated into some of the labels in this exhibition.

Selected Objects

Utagawa Kunisada (Toyokuni III)

The Twelfth Month: Making Mochi Cakes (Shiwasu: Mochitsuki), 1854

Utagawa Kunisada (Toyokuni III)

The Fourth Month: The first cuckoo (Uzuki: Hatsu hototogisu), 1854

Utagawa Kunisada (Toyokuni III)

The Seventh Month: Waiting for the Moon (Fumizuki: Nijurokuya machi), 1854

Utagawa Kunisada (Toyokuni III)

The Fifth Month: Flower Arranging Contest (Satsuki, Ikebana awase), 1854

Utagawa Kunisada (Toyokuni III)

The Ninth Month: Chrysanthemum (?; character illegible) Party in the Ninth Month (Choyo: Kiku (?) no tsuki utage), 1854

Utagawa Kunisada (Toyokuni III)

The Eleventh Month: The Cock's Fair (Shimotsuki: Tori no machi), 1854

Utagawa Kunisada (Toyokuni III)

The Tenth Month (Indian summer): First snow (Koharu: hatsuyuki), 1854

Utagawa Kunisada (Toyokuni III)

The First Month: First Dance of the New Year (Moshun: Odorizome), 1854

Utagawa Kunisada (Toyokuni III)

[The Second Month] Seasonal Change of Clothes: Plum Viewing (Koromogae umemi), 1854

Utagawa Kunisada (Toyokuni III)

The Eighth Month: Moon Viewing on the Fifteenth Night (Hatsuki: Tsukimi), 1854

Utagawa Kunisada (Toyokuni III)

The Sixth Month: Summer airing of clothes (Minazuki: doyoboshi), 1854

Utagawa Kunisada (Toyokuni III)

The Third Month: The Doll Festival (Yayoi: Hina matsuri), 1854

More objects +

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