Artist: Utagawa Kunisada [歌川 国貞] a.k.a. Utagawa Toyokuni III [三代 歌川 豊国] (Japanese, 1786 – 1865). An untrimmed fan print titled Fuji Tsukuba aiaigasa, shows the actors Ichikawa Ebizo V [市川海老蔵] and the onnagata actor Iwai Shijaku I [岩井紫若] sharing an umbrella against the wind. Tsukuba, about 50 kilometres from Edo, was an area where both Fuji and Mount Tsukuba could be viewed together. Mount Fuji being the female and Mount Tsukuba the male. An aizuri-e background (common to all the designs in this set). A play on images and words. Actors: Ichikawa Danjūrō VII [市川団十郎] (Japanese, 1791 – 1859); other names: Ichikawa Ebizō V [市川海老蔵], Ichikawa Hakuen II, Ichikawa Shinnosuke I. Iwai Matsunosuke I [岩井松之助] (Japanese, 1804 – 1845); other names: Iwai Hanshirō VII, Iwai Shijaku I [岩井紫若], Iwai Komurasaki I. Publisher: Ibaya Senzaburo [伊場屋仙三郎] (Japanese, fl. c. 1845 – 1847). The publisher’s seal is on the umbrella. Date: circa 1832. Signed: Kōchōrō Kunisada ga in a red double-gourd cartouche. From the series of fan prints:

SVJP-0341.2021

SVJP-0342.2021

Two more prints from the series 'Fuji and Tsukuba sharing an umbrella' (Fuji Tsukuba aiaigasa), not in this Collection:

Kabuki actors Onoe Kikugorō III and Iwai Kumesaburo II. Year: c. 1832; Publisher: No seal; Signed: Kōchōrō Kunisada ga From Kunisada Project.

Kabuki actors Bandō Minosuke II and Iwai Shijaku I. Year: c. 1832; Publisher: No seal; Signed: Kōchōrō Kunisada ga From Kunisada Project.

 

Artist: Utagawa Kunisada [歌川 国貞], a.k.a. Utagawa Toyokuni III [三代 歌川 豊国] (Japanese, 1786 – 1865). Signed: Toyokuni ga [豊国 画] in a red toshidama cartouche Block carver: Yokokawa Takejirō [横川竹二郎] (Japanese, fl. 1845 – 1863), seal: 彫竹 – Hori Take. Publisher: Ibaya Senzaburō [伊場屋仙三郎] (Japanese, fl. c. 1845 – 1847). Combined date and kiwame seal: Ansei 5 (II-XII/1858). Size: Untrimmed fan print (uchiwa-e), 300 x 232 mm.

A young woman adjusting her hairpin on a balcony during the Tanabata festival, as inscribed on the white folding fan: [七夕] (Tanabata).

Inscription on the blue book (print title): Early autumn [はつ秋や] (hatsu akiya), inscription on the purple book (series title): Short love songs, second volume [端唄の意 二編] (Hauta no kokoro nihen). According to Marks (2010), Hauta no kokoro nihen series of fan prints was published by Ibaya in 1858 (p. 267|P6871).

The series refers to love songs of a certain type popular in late Edo. They were performed with the accompaniment of a shamisen, “Seven herbs of autumn, the song of the insects is not heard; the bodies of lightning bugs are burnt, and the precious writings of love are getting thinner like the song of the insects as I am waiting for you. So, on an early autumn evening, I spot the glitter of a lightning bug that lingered among the autumn grasses, and while listening to the pine cricket, I am singing with my heart troubled by love". [Tokyo National Museum; translation provided by Elena Varshavsky].

Tanabata [たなばた] or [七夕] – meaning "Evening of the seventh", also known as the Star Festival [星祭] (Hoshi matsuri) – is a Japanese festival originating from the Chinese Qixi Festival. One popular Tanabata custom is to write one's wishes on a piece of paper and hang that piece of paper on a specially erected bamboo tree, in the hope that the wishes become true.

Artist: Utagawa Kunisada [歌川 国貞], a.k.a. Utagawa Toyokuni III [三代 歌川 豊国] (Japanese, 1786 – 1865) Signature: Toyokuni ga (豊國画) in a red toshidama cartouche Artist: Utagawa Hiroshige [歌川 広重] a.k.a. Andō Hiroshige [安藤 広重] (Japanese, 1797 – 1858). Signature: Hiroshige ga (廣重画) in a red rectangular cartouche Date and Censor Seal: 1858 — Ansei 5 (午, Year of the Horse) plus Approved (kiwame, 極) Publisher: Iseya Sōemon [伊勢屋惣右衛門] (Japanese, 1776 – 1862); seal: hanmoto Ue (板元上) Media: Aiban yoko-e uchiwa-e (団扇絵), color woodblock print, 232 x 298 mm Title: Muronotsu in Harima Province (Harima Muronotsu, 播磨室ノ津) Series: A Set of Ports in the Provinces (Shokoku minato tsukushi, 諸国湊尽) A half-length portrait of a woman in a three-quarter view facing right, seated in a boat, gazing toward the Muronotsu harbour. She extends her right hand as if pointing toward the merchant ships anchored near the shore. Her black hair is arranged in an elaborate updo, adorned with gilt hairpins (簪 kanzashi) and a decorative comb. She wears a multi-layered kimono featuring a purple outer robe with delicate butterfly and floral embroidery, a blue-patterned collar, and a red underlayer with a geometric motif. The background landscape, designed by Hiroshige, depicts Muronotsu in Harima Province, an important Edo-period port along the Inland Sea. Several merchant ships with masts loaded with goods are docked near the tree-covered coastline while a smaller sailing vessel moves across the bay. The sky transitions into a soft pink and purple gradient, suggesting sunrise or sunset.

In Kunisada: Imaging, Drama and Beauty by Robert Schaap [LIB-1212.2017], we see the following description: In this composition, Kunisada was responsible for the female figure seated in a boat and Utagawa Hiroshige for the background landscape. The setting is Muronotsu in Harima province, which was known at the time as an important harbour catering to traffic along the Inland Sea to Kyoto. It also had the reputation for its female entertainers and prostitutes. They feature in the no play Courtesans of Muro (Murogimi) in which the deity at Muro performs a dance, lured in by the singing of these women.

Artist: Utagawa Kunisada [歌川 国貞], a.k.a. Utagawa Toyokuni III [三代 歌川 豊国] (Japanese, 1786 – 1865). Signed: Kōchōrō Kunisada ga [香朝楼國貞画] in a red double-gourd cartouche. Date: No censor/date seal. Publisher: No seal. Media: Aiban yoko-e uchiwa-e (団扇絵), color woodblock print, 217 x 283 mm. Series: The taste of the new type of woman (Shingata bijin konomi) [新形美人好].

A half-length portrait of a young woman in three-quarter view, turned slightly to the right. She is elegantly dressed in a blue kimono adorned with floral motifs, worn over a red under-kimono with a blue collar featuring a lattice pattern. Her elaborately styled hair is adorned with kanzashi hairpins and a comb, indicative of her status, possibly as a courtesan or geisha. The background is filled with intricate textile patterns, including a central pink scroll embellished with golden embroidery of waves and plovers. She holds a rolled scroll featuring a snowflake-like pattern, possibly a stencil used for dyeing fabrics. The blue cartouche on the right reads: 新形美人好 (Shingata bijin konomi) – the series title.

Artist: Utagawa Kunisada [歌川 国貞] a.k.a. Utagawa Toyokuni III [三代歌川豊国] (Japanese, 1786 – 1865). Signed: Ōju Toyokuni ga [応需豊国画], in a toshidama cartouche. Double nanushi censor seals Mera & Murata (1846-50). Publisher: Kojimaya Jūbei [小嶋屋重兵衛] (Japanese, fl. c. 1797 – 1869). Kabuki actor Ichikawa Danjūrō VIII [市川団十郎] (Ichikawa Ebizō VI, Ichikawa Shinnosuke II, Japanese, 1823 – 1854) watches the sunrise over Mount Fuji. The complete set of series Moon, Sun, Stars [月日星] (tsuki-hi-hoshi/boshi),  three sources of light (sankō) [三光]:

SVJP-0211-1.2016: The Moon

SVJP-0211-2.2016: The Sun

SVJP-0211-3.2016: The Stars

Artist: Utagawa Kunisada [歌川 国貞], a.k.a. Utagawa Toyokuni III [三代歌川豊国] (Japanese, 1786–1865). Signed: 五渡亭国貞画 (Gototei Kunisada ga). Publisher: Ibaya Senzaburō [伊場屋仙三郎] (Japanese, fl. c. 1820–1850). Date-Aratame Seal: 寅改, Tora-aratame, Tenpō 1 (1830). Media: Aiban yoko-e uchiwa-e (団扇絵), color woodblock print, 229 × 266 mm. Actors and Roles:

• Bandō Minosuke II [坂東蓑助] (Japanese, 1802–1863); other names: Morita Kan'ya XI, Bandō Mitsugorō IV.
  • Depicted as a goldfish vendor (kingyo-uri, 金魚売).
• Iwai Kumesaburō II (二代目 岩井 粂三郎) (Japanese, 1799–1836); other names: Iwai Hanshirō VI, Iwai Hisajirō I, Baiga (poetry name), Shūka (poetry name).
  • Depicted as a geisha.

Full-length view of Iwai Kumesaburō II as a geisha, standing and holding a glass container with a goldfish. She wears an olive kimono decorated with white plum blossoms and a blue obi. She carries a folding fan (扇子, sensu) in the back and hygienic tissues (御髪紙, onkotogami) in the front, reinforcing her identity. Her companion, Bandō Minosuke II, a goldfish vendor, sits nearby, adjusting a towel on his shoulder, wearing a blue kimono with stylized butterflies. In the background is a festival procession with a large float (dashi, 山車), a rooster on top, a crowd, and banners. The inscription 天王御祭礼 (Ten’ō Go-sairei) confirms that this scene takes place during the Ten’ō Festival, an important Edo-period event in Nihonbashi Kobuna-chō, associated with Gozu Tennō (牛頭天王), a deity protecting against plagues. This print is an example of benigerai-e (紅嫌絵, "red-avoiding pictures"), characterized by the absence of red pigments and the use of Prussian blue and olive tones. Produced in Tenpō 1 (1830), this colour scheme reflects a stylistic trend in early 19th-century ukiyo-e. However, in this case, the absence of red may be due to deliberate artistic choice or the natural fading of red pigments over time. A closely related print from the same festival-themed series depicts a nearly identical composition featuring different actors and a different festival. Title: "Asakusa Shimanrokusennichi" (浅草四万六千日). Festival: Sanja Festival at Sensō-ji (associated with the hōzuki market). Actors: Nakamura Shikan II as a water vendor (mizuu-uri) and Segawa Kikunojō V in a role similar to the geisha in our print. While not depicting actual kabuki performances, these prints serve as actor-centric promotional works, using seasonal festivals as a recognizable and engaging backdrop for Edo audiences. They share a common design structure, suggesting they were created using a standardized template, with variations in actors, festivals, and small details. This approach allowed Kunisada to efficiently produce multiple fan prints, catering to kabuki enthusiasts who collected actor portraits. These prints exhibit characteristics of mitate-e (見立絵), where actors are placed in imagined or symbolic settings unrelated to specific stage roles, further emphasizing their public personas rather than any particular performance.