ANTIQUE JAPANESE WOODBLOCK PRINT BY UTAGAWA KUNISADA (1786-1864) 15IN x 20IN (38cm x 51cm)

Inventory #: 25-159 - $375.00

An antique Japanese woodblock print by Utagawa Kunisada, also known as Toyokuni III (1786-1864). It is matted and framed under glass and it measures 15 inches x 20 inches. This piece is believed to have been printed in in the 1850s, and it was acquired from a Metro Washington DC estate.

About the Artist: During his lifetime Kunisada Utagawa was considered to be the best print designer by his contemporaries. He was more popular than Hiroshige, Hokusai or Kuniyoshi. And Kunisada was extremely productive. His total output is estimated at more than 20,000 designs, many made by his students. Kunisada was born near Edo (today Tokyo) as the son of an affluent merchant with a ferry boat license. At the age of fifteen he joined the famous art school of Utagawa Toyokuni and took the name Kunisada. In 1807 the young artist produced his first illustrated book. And in 1808 his first actor prints were published. His fame grew fast. While other artists like Kuniyoshi Utagawa or Hiroshige had to fight for recognition for years, he was successful from the beginning. He should become the most commercially successful of all woodblock printmakers ever. His early success may not have had a good influence on his personality. He had a reputation for his conceited personality. Kunisada designed a wide spectrum of traditional ukiyo-e subjects like kabuki themes, beautiful women, historical events and quite a few shunga prints. He made few landscapes. Kunisada also had a flourishing ukiyo-e school. The best of his students were Kunichika and Chikanobu who themselves became famous artists of the Japanese woodblock printmaking tradition.