Object data
nishikie, with metallic pigments and blindprinting
height 210 mm × width 94 mm
Ryûryûkyo Shinsai
Courtesan Standing by a Kimono on a Rack
Japan, Japan, 1809
Inscriptions
-
stamped on verso with mark of Louis Gonse
Provenance
…; Louis Gonse (1846-1921), Parijs (collector‘s mark);...; purchased from the dealer Kunsthandel Huys den Esch, Dodewaard, by J.H.W. Goslings (1943-2011), Epse, near Deventer, 1997;1 by whom donated to the museum, 1999
Object number: RP-P-1999-251
Credit line: Gift of J.H.W. Goslings, Epse
Copyright: Public domain
Context
For other designs of this series, see:
Jurojin: Woman holding book over her head, a kneeling boy offers a scroll2
Daikoku, Woman adjusting a boy's cap3
Fukurokuju: Woman tying a sash, obi, on a boy dressed in courtly robes4
Ebisu: Seated woman, a boy behind her holding a toy bream on a bamboo pole5
Hotei, Woman kneels by a boy holding a fan.6
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 courtesan standing by a clothes rack with an over-kimono draped on it. The kimono with a decoration of a lute, biwa, and a tree.
From the series The Seven Gods of Good Fortune, Shichifukujin.
The biwa in the design is a reference to the Goddess Benzaiten, one of the Seven Gods of Fortune, whose usual attribute is the lute.
One poem by Nanpatei Sayokaze.
The poem refers to the 'Year of the Snake', Tsuchinoto no mi.
The Seven Gods of Fortune are a common theme for surimono series, mostly alluding to the gods by means of their attributes and frequently depicting women at various occupations. For more on the Seven Gods of Good Fortune or Luck, the Shichifukujin, see RP-P-1962-331.
The emblem of the Kasumiren precedes the series-title, hand-stamped at top right.
Issued by the Kasumiren
Signature reading: Shinsai ga
Literature
M. Forrer, Surimono in the Rijksmuseum Amsterdam, Leiden 2013, no. 164
Citation
M. Forrer, 2013, 'Ryûryûkyo Shinsai, Courtesan Standing by a Kimono on a Rack, Japan, 1809', in Surimono from the Goslings Collection in the Rijksmuseum, online coll. cat. Amsterdam: hdl.handle.net/10934/RM0001.COLLECT.359184
(accessed 26 November 2024 03:45:20).