Artist: Kawanabe Kyōsai [河鍋 暁斎] (Japanese, 1831 – 1889)
Signed: Seisei Kyōsai [惺々暁斎]
Media: Fan print; Aiban yoko-e uchiwa-e (団扇絵), color woodblock print, 221 x 297 mm.
Publisher: Unknown / No seal
Date: No seal / Meiji Era, 1870s, after 1872.
Three standing courtesans dressed in layered purple, blue, and fuchsine red kimono are engaged in conversation while reading a letter. Their elaborate coiffures and ornate attire suggest they are high-ranking courtesans, likely oiran (花魁). The kimono are richly decorated with seasonal motifs: streams and chrysanthemums, cherry blossoms, pine needles and snowflakes, and a flock of knotted geese, a possible allusion to journeys or longing. At the lower left, two kamuro (young attendants) are absorbed in their own dialogue, perhaps mimicking or gossiping about their elders.
The group is staged against a large fan-shaped blank segment. To the right rises the classic latticework façade (kōshi) of a Yoshiwara brothel, the architectural screen behind which courtesans once presented themselves to prospective clients. A small rectangular inset to the left shows Mount Fuji in the distance, with cherry trees and pines over hills. In a surreal backdrop, over the scene, there are oversized purple flowers (likely camellias, tsubaki, つばき) on leafy branches and a butterfly in mid-flight. These elements do not represent literal scale but evoke a dreamlike, symbolic realm.
Pigments and Technique:
The vivid fuchsia red is almost certainly printed using fuchsine, an early aniline dye introduced to Japan in the late 1860s. Fuchsine, also called magenta, was valued for its intensity and became popular in Meiji-era prints. It was printed via woodblock, using a dense application of synthetic dye mixed with animal glue (nikawa, にかわ) to achieve a saturated hue. These synthetic colours often replaced traditional reds like safflower (beni) or cinnabar (shū), lending Meiji prints their distinctively modern aesthetic (but making them more light-sensitive).
Interpretation:
The women’s attention to the letter suggests a moment of significance — possibly news from a patron. In Yoshiwara’s custom, such letters often hinted at financial support or even liberation (miuke, みうけ) from a courtesan’s contract. The surrounding symbols — flowers, a butterfly, distant Mount Fuji, and blossoming cherry trees — may represent the hope of freedom as the boundaries between reality and longing briefly dissolve.
