Waking Up: A Girl of the Kōka Era (1844–1848)
Tsukioka Yoshitoshi Japanese
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.
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