The Actor Nakamura Utaemon III as Kato Masakiyo

Maker(s)
Artist: Shunkōsai Hokushū 春好斎 北洲 (fl. ca. 1810-1832)
Historical period(s)
Edo period, 1822
Medium
Ink and color on paper
Dimensions
H x W (overall): 37.4 x 26.1 cm (14 3/4 x 10 1/4 in)
Geography
Japan
Credit Line
The Anne van Biema Collection
Collection
Arthur M. Sackler Collection
Accession Number
S2004.3.259
On View Location
Currently not on view
Classification(s)
Print
Type

Woodblock print

Keywords
actor, Anne van Biema collection, Edo period (1615 - 1868), Japan, kabuki, oban, poems, portrait, ukiyo-e, yakusha-e
Provenance
Provenance research underway.
Label

Nakamura Utaemon III was a major star of the Osaka kabuki stage, but he also performed in Edo. Each of his arrivals in Edo and Osaka created great excitement and intensified his rivalries with other star actors, notably Arashi Kichisaburo in Osaka and Bando Mitsugoro III in Edo. Here a close-up portrait by the Osaka artist Hokushu conveys Utaemon's projection of strength and determination as the character Kato Kiyomasa (1562-1611), a symbol of loyalty in the face of lethal treachery. The print commemorates a performance at the Kado Theater in Osaka in 1820. A poem, a common feature of Osaka prints, is inscribed above the actor's head. It reads:

 Kiyomasa is the moon
 shining on the world
 at midday:
 an art of piercing insight.

Translation of poem by Roger S. Keyes (Roger S. Keyes and Keiko Mizushima, The Theatrical World of Osaka Prints [Philadelphia Museum
of Art, 1973])

Published References
  • Ann Yonemura, et al. Masterful Illusions: Japanese Prints from the Anne van Biema Collection. Seattle and Washington. cat. 45, pp. 144-145.
Collection Area(s)
Japanese Art
Web Resources
Google Cultural Institute
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