Utamaro 歌麿: The Dream of the Cat 猫の夢 (SOLD)

Artist: Kitagawa Utamaro (1751-1806)
Title: A Cat Dreaming of Stealing a Fish

A sleeping cat has curled up atop a freshly unwrapped bolt of cloth (something rather naughty in and of itself), looking quite contented, almost smiling. We see its dream bubble above, as it has caught a fish. There is more to the dream-story, as the fish is being taken away by an angry-looking man, although the woman next to him looks more amused than anything. She holds a bamboo tube that might be used to help start a fire, as well as an empty plate, so she has perhaps been cooking. Utamaro designed several other prints with dream-bubbles, but the dreamers in those designs were humans. This design was used as a cover image for some Tuttle editions of the novel “I Am a Cat” by Natsume Soseki. This work is so scarce that none seem to survive with the colors intact.

Dimensions: ôban  Signature: Utamaro hitsu

Condition: Very good impression, fair/poor color and condition. With restorations to the paper at top.

SKU: UTA017