Description
In this dramatic night scene, Kuniyoshi emphasized the moon and its huge glowing halo. He employed Western-style shadows beneath the figures and the palanquin. The man at the center is singing with his mouth wide open. Perhaps he is headed home after drinking in New Yoshiwara, the pleasure quarter, visible only as a series of low rooflines in the background beyond the rice paddies. The chatting pair and wealthy passenger inside the palanquin may be on their way to the pleasure quarter.
Provenance
(Yamanaka & Co., New York, NY, sold to Edward L. Whittemore); Edward L. Whittemore [1862–1930], Cleveland, OH, bequest to the Cleveland Museum of Art (?–1930); The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH (1930–)
New Yoshiwara (Shin Yoshiwara), from the series Famous Places in the Eastern Capital
early 1830s
Accession Number
1930.202
Medium
color woodblock print
Dimensions
Sheet: 24.5 x 36.9 cm (9 5/8 x 14 1/2 in.)
Classification
Credit Line
Bequest of Edward L. Whittemore