Currently not on view
Nakamura Utaemon IV as Matsuomaru (「舎人松王丸」四代目中村歌右衛門), from an untitled series of actor portraits,
ca. 1863
Utagawa Kunisada 歌川国貞 (Utagawa Toyokuni III 三代歌川豊国), 1786–1865; born and died Tokyo, Japan
Japanese
Edo period, 1603–1868
2015-6734
Information
Title
Nakamura Utaemon IV as Matsuomaru (「舎人松王丸」四代目中村歌右衛門), from an untitled series of actor portraits
Dates
ca. 1863
Medium
Woodblock print, key block (ōban tate-e format); ink and color on paper
Dimensions
37.9 × 26.6 cm (14 15/16 × 10 1/2 in.)
Credit Line
Museum purchase, Laura P. Hall Memorial Fund, selected for acquisition by students in ART 425: The Japanese Print
Object Number
2015-6734
Place Made
Asia, Japan
Description
Two sheets by Utagawa Kunisada (a multicolor actor print and its key block proof print)
The prints are an unusual example of a finished print and the key block proof print used to produce it, and it is this combination that convinced the students to recommend them. The finished print is a representative example of a type for which Kunisada was well known: a bust-length portrait of a famous actor. It is in pristine condition, the colors are bright and well preserved, the composition is dramatically bold, and the impression is excellent. It employs some of the most technically advanced and difficult printing techniques then available, for which the best Kunisada prints are known, including overprinting of colors for subtle tonal effects, the use of mica, and blind printing to create intricate textures. The pair is unusual in that it includes the key block proof print. Proof prints were used in the production of a multi-color woodblock print: each color in a print required a separate woodblock, and so proof prints, comprising only the black outlines of the design, were pasted onto blocks to guide the carver; in this process, proof prints were destroyed. The example is a rare (though not unknown) survivor, and it is especially unusual to have an opportunity to purchase the proof print and finished print together. Sebastian Izzard found them separately, and made them available to us as a pair. Together the pair would be an effective teaching tool to help explain the technical aspects of printmaking, both in class and in exhibitions for museum visitors. The students noted, too, in their examination of the prints that even the type of paper used was different for the proof print and finished print, the former very thin to allow for easier carving and the latter quite thick, typical of Kunisada’s deluxe prints.
The prints are an unusual example of a finished print and the key block proof print used to produce it, and it is this combination that convinced the students to recommend them. The finished print is a representative example of a type for which Kunisada was well known: a bust-length portrait of a famous actor. It is in pristine condition, the colors are bright and well preserved, the composition is dramatically bold, and the impression is excellent. It employs some of the most technically advanced and difficult printing techniques then available, for which the best Kunisada prints are known, including overprinting of colors for subtle tonal effects, the use of mica, and blind printing to create intricate textures. The pair is unusual in that it includes the key block proof print. Proof prints were used in the production of a multi-color woodblock print: each color in a print required a separate woodblock, and so proof prints, comprising only the black outlines of the design, were pasted onto blocks to guide the carver; in this process, proof prints were destroyed. The example is a rare (though not unknown) survivor, and it is especially unusual to have an opportunity to purchase the proof print and finished print together. Sebastian Izzard found them separately, and made them available to us as a pair. Together the pair would be an effective teaching tool to help explain the technical aspects of printmaking, both in class and in exhibitions for museum visitors. The students noted, too, in their examination of the prints that even the type of paper used was different for the proof print and finished print, the former very thin to allow for easier carving and the latter quite thick, typical of Kunisada’s deluxe prints.
Culture
Period
Materials
Techniques
Subject
