A Woman and a Cat

Description

Kitagawa Utamaro pairs a seated woman and a cat resting near her feet. Her loose pale pink kimono gives the figure a soft, spacious outline as she turns within the sparse setting. The animal appears at the lower right near a dark furnishing, adding a small companion whose scale changes the balance of the human-centered composition.

Made around 1793–1794, the museum object is one sheet from a triptych of ink-and-color woodblock prints. The represented portion retains its own intimate focus while belonging to a wider original design. Utamaro contrasts the woman’s broad clothing with the compact resting cat, making quiet co-presence the source of the image’s appeal. The open ground keeps attention on their relationship, allowing an ordinary domestic pairing to become a sustained subject for looking.

Read our guide to giclée prints or browse the Kitagawa Utamaro collection.