Artist: Utagawa Kunisada (1786-1865)
Title: Diptych of Kabuki actors posed in an open book from the play Dan no ura kabuto gunki 壇浦兜軍記～阿古屋 Date: 1862/10
Bold design with Iwanaga miming playing the shamisen with his sheathed sword and fan as he sings, looking across the “book page” to Akoya and Shigetada. Iwanaga is played by the kabuki actor Nakamura Shikan (right), Akoya (center) played by Onoe Eisaburô, and Shigetada by Ichikawa Ichizô (left). In a charming trompe l’oeil, this scene is depicted as if an open book. This must refer to the scene where the courtesan Akoya, lover of Kagekiyo, is interrogated for the whereabouts of her fugitive lover. Shigetada is the head of the imperial guards, and uses three instruments to test Akoya’s honesty, as she claims she knows not where Kagekiyo has fled. Akoya performs on three instruments perfectly, matching her songs with the situation, thus proving her innocence. Iwanaga is the assistant examiner, and here plays something of the bad guy, so he is perhaps mocking her performance. With extensive blindprinting (gauffrage) in the background of the book, on the edges of the page, in the crane, in the fan and in the white of the actor’s costumes.
Condition: Excellent impression, color and condition. Untrimmed and unbacked. Some minor wrinkles. Dimensions: ôban diptych (37.5 x 25 cm, approx. each sheet)
Publisher: Kagiya Shobei Signature: nanajuhachi sai Toyokuni hitsu
SKU: KUS311
