Description
Katsukawa Shunshō’s portrait of Yamashita Kinsaku II as Shigenoi centers on an adult female-role figure inclining toward a small child. Long, lightly patterned garments follow the bend of the body, making the exchange between the two figures gentle and immediate. The actor’s assumed persona becomes visible through a relationship rather than an isolated pose.
Dated to the summer of 1772, this ink-and-color woodblock print belongs to Edo-period Japan. The title keeps the transformation legible, allowing actor and character to coexist without being confused. Shunshō’s image preserves a stage persona in a form that outlasts the performance. The work’s human interest lies in that deliberate change of identity, where a performer’s own presence gives life to someone understood as belonging to the drama.
Read our guide to giclée prints or browse the Katsukawa Shunshō collection.
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