Yoshiiku: Toriyama Akinari Terutada with Ghost and Spiderwebs

Artist: Utagawa Yoshiiku (1833-1904)
Title: Toriyama Akinari Terutada and Ghost    Date: 1864
Series: Modern Parodies of Genji 今様擬源氏　空蝉　渡辺綱

Toriyama Akinari Terutada with Ghost. We see what seems to be a woman drawing herself close as she grasps the long sword that is sheathed and tucked into her belt. The character’s name in the title, Terutada, is actually for a male character, perhaps from Shiranui Monogatari. Perhaps this is a male character posing as a woman here, as the hairstyle and the clothes are feminine, but the pose is reminiscent of a classic masculine actor’s pose.  Behind the figure rises a grey ghost, seeming to appear from the bottom of a rustic screen.  Terutada seems to feel the presence of the ghost, rather than see it, as their back is turned to the apparition. There is a flame of the supernatural behind them, and enormous cobwebs in the background; the setting is very “haunted house”.  The connection between this story and the 35th chapter of the Tale of Genji was no doubt a fun puzzle for the ukiyo-e buying public of the time to solve. This is an early impression, with blindprinting in the cartouche. See the Metropolitan Museum of Art for their example.

Condition: Excellent impression, color and condition.
Dimensions: ôban (36.3 x 24.5 cm)
Signed: Ikkeisai Yoshiiku ga
Publisher: Omiya Kyujiro (Kiyudo)

SKU: YII042