Object data
nishikie, with metallic pigments and blindprinting
height 214 mm × width 186 mm
Ryûryûkyo Shinsai
Woman Carrying a Bucket
Japan, Japan, 1804
Provenance
…; purchased from the dealer Boswell Books and Prints, London, by J.H.W. Goslings (1943-2011), Epse, near Deventer, 1986;1 by whom donated to the museum, 1991
Object number: RP-P-1991-587
Credit line: Gift of J.H.W. Goslings, Epse
Copyright: Public domain
The artist
Ryuryukyo Shinsai (n.d., but often given as 1764?-1820; the latter date is definitely incorrect as his last known designs were issued in 1825) is said to have first been follower of Tawaraya Sori, and later of Katsushika Hokusai, who gave him the art-name Shinsai in 1800. His personal name was Masayuki. He was one of the most prolific designers of surimono in the early 19th century and thoroughly explored the possibilities of issuing works in titled series.
Entry
A woman carrying a bucket to draw the first water, wakamizu, of the New Year turns her head to look at the white rat walking on her son's arm. The bucket has twisted straw ropes, shimenawa, ferns, urajiro, and other leaves around it.
The white rat is an obvious reference to the zodiacal sign, making 1804 the most likely date for a design with this layout and of this format - not to be considered as the later shikishiban.
Six poems, the last by Senshuan [II] Kasumi [also Shimotoke, 1761-1811, first a follower of Tsumuri no Hikaru, later a judge of the Asakusagawa, the owner of a bookshop, and a publisher under the name Yamanaka Yosuke].2
Issued by followers of the poet Senshuan [II] Kasumi
Signature reading: Shinsai ga
Literature
M. Forrer, Surimono in the Rijksmuseum Amsterdam, Leiden 2013, no. 141
Citation
M. Forrer, 2013, 'Ryûryûkyo Shinsai, Woman Carrying a Bucket, Japan, 1804', in Surimono from the Goslings Collection in the Rijksmuseum, online coll. cat. Amsterdam: hdl.handle.net/10934/RM0001.COLLECT.422457
(accessed 23 November 2024 18:16:25).