Image
Kitagawa Utamaro 喜多川歌麿
Description
Maker
Kitagawa Utamaro 喜多川歌麿 (Japanese, 1754-1806)
Title
Small Bird and Japanese Morning Glories (Asagao ni kotori)
Period
Year
Medium
Materials/Techniques
-
Techniques
Materials
ink and colorSupports
Geography
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Place Made: Japan
Dimensions
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Plate: 34.5 x 7.6 cm (13 9/16 x 3 inches)
Signature / Inscription / Marks
-
Poem:
Me nimo tsuki/hana ya inari no/asobisugiThe cherry blossoms at Inari Shrine/catch one's eye at the festivities-/it's too much
Inari (Fox) Shrines were located all over Edo. One was next door to the Yoshiwara so there may be a double-meaning of being overwhelmed by the cherry blossoms there-courtesans-while at the shrine. "Inari shrine" is also a metaphor for "a lot." "Asobi" can mean participate in the festivities at the shrine and "play," as in amuse oneself in the Yoshiwara. As morning glories are short-lived so is dalliance in the pleasure quarters.
Signature: Utamaro hitsu Credit / Object Number
-
Credit
Gift of Mrs. John D. Rockefeller, Jr.
Object Number
34.103 Type
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