Waking Up: A Girl of the Kōka Era (1844–1848)

1888

Not on view

The series that made Yoshitoshi a noted artist was one of the most important Meiji series of ukiyo-e prints of beauties. The lady cleans her teeth with a split-bamboo toothbrush. Her cotton sleeping robe slips off one shoulder, and a few strands of her hair have come loose, suggesting that she is only half awake. The large morning-glory flowers, known as asagao (literally, "morning faces"), in the pot behind her on the right, are cleverly associated with the portrait.

The excellence of the technique of this print is demonstrated in the fine lines representing the woman's hair, and reveals Yoshitoshi's genius for sensitive and sophisticated compositions.

Artwork Details

Object Information

Overview

Signatures, Inscriptions, and Markings

Provenance

References

Title: Waking Up: A Girl of the Kōka Era (1844–1848)
Artist: Tsukioka Yoshitoshi (Japanese, 1839–1892)
Period: Meiji period (1868–1912)
Date: 1888
Culture: Japan
Medium: Woodblock print; ink and color on paper
Dimensions: 14 5/8 x 10 in. (37.1 x 25.4 cm)
Classification: Prints
Credit Line: Purchase, Friends of Asian Art Gifts, 2005
Object Number: 2005.349
Curatorial Department: Asian Art

More Artwork

By Tsukioka Yoshitoshi

In the same medium

From the same time and place

Illustration of Ladies-in-waiting boarding at a station (Kanjo sutēshon chakusha zu), Tsukioka Yoshitoshi Japanese, Woodblock print; ink and color on paper, Japan — Illustration of Ladies-in-waiting boarding at a station (Kanjo sutēshon chakusha zu)
Tsukioka Yoshitoshi
1879

Armor (<i>Gusoku</i>), Saotome Ietada Japanese, Iron, lacquer, silk, gilt copper, Japanese — Armor (*Gusoku*)
Armorer Helmet bowl signed Saotome Ietada
Armorer Breastplate inscribed inside, Myōchin Munesuke
16th and 18th centuries

Night Rain at the Double-Shelf Stand, from the series Eight Parlor Views (Zashiki hakkei), Suzuki Harunobu Japanese, Woodblock print (first edition); ink and colors on paper, medium-sized print (chuban), Japan — Night Rain at the Double-Shelf Stand, from the series Eight Parlor Views (Zashiki hakkei)
Suzuki Harunobu
ca. 1766

Horse and Rider, Tsukioka Yoshitoshi Japanese, Triptych of woodblock prints; ink and color on paper, Japan — Horse and Rider
Tsukioka Yoshitoshi

Shō, Bamboo wood, metal, Japanese — Shō
Japanese
19th century

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