Actor in a Female Role on the Beach, Torii Kiyohiro, 1753 - 1757
color woodcut, h 314mm × w 142mm More details
The earliest colour woodblock prints are called benizuri-e, meaning red printed image. The process typically began with printing the black line block, followed by up to two colour blocks. Besides a block for all the red parts of the print, the second colour block was usually printed in green. Here we see a scene from a stage play. Because only male actors were allowed to act in plays during this period, they also took on the roles of female characters.
