About This Print
Source: Comic Genius: Kawanabe Kyōsai, Oikawa Shigeru, Clark Timothy and Forrer Matthi, Tokyo Shinbun, 1996, p. 220.Kyōsai gives us three images in this harimaze print - Mt. Fuji, a bell-ring cricket (suzumushi - known for its unique song) on a gourd vine with a crescent moon and a comic take on the kabuki play Kusazuri. Kusazuri is a play "in which Goro and Juro try to get their revenge on Kudo Suketsune for killing their father. Goro tries to join his brother Juro on stage but Asahina tries to hold him back. Goro brakes wind, and Asahina loosens his grip."
The Series Kyōsai Manga
Source: Comic Genius: Kawanabe Kyōsai, Oikawa Shigeru, Clark Timothy and Forrer Matthi, Tokyo Shinbun, 1996, p. 32-33, 220-225.This series, which used "legitimate Kano school subjects as their themes" depicted in comic situations, made Kyosai popular as an ukiyo-e artist. Oikawa points out that what made Kyosai stand out from other period artists who used Kano school themes, such as Hokusai, was his "ability to parody the actual Kano school works" in a "fresh new style" making him "the popular artist for comic prints."
At least ten prints are known to comprise this series and each single sheet includes several different subjects [harimaze-e] with each sheet including at least one comic scene. "This series continued to be printed in the middle of the Meiji period, and several different types of editions exist. At the time, these harimaze prints were cut into individual scenes and the small pieces were used to repair the holes in paper sliding doors and screens. Kyosai’s humorous scenes were thus enjoyed in the everyday lives of the Japanese people."
Print Details
| IHL Catalog | #681 | ||
| Title or Description | Bell-ring Cricket, Mt. Fuji and a Parody of Kusazuri 鈴虫, 富士, 見立草摺 | ||
| Series | Kyōsai Manga 狂斎漫画 [Cartoons by Kyōsai] | ||
| Artist | Kawanabe Kyōsai (1831-1889) | ||
| Signature |
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| Seal of the Artist |  | ||
| Publication Date |  | ||
| Publisher |  | ||
| Carver | |||
| Printer | |||
| Impression | excellent | ||
| Colors | excellent | ||
| Condition | good - slight wrinkling and soiling; top margin partially trimmed other margins complete; unbacked | ||
| Genre | ukiyo-e, harimaze-e, giga-e | ||
| Miscellaneous | |||
| Format | vertical oban | ||
| H x W Paper | 14 x 9 7/8 in. (35.6 x 25.1 cm) | ||
| H x W Image | 13 1/2 x 9 1/8 in. (34.3 x 23.2 cm) | ||
| Collections This Print | Kawanabe Kyosai Memorial Museum | ||
| Reference Literature | Comic Genius: Kawanabe Kyōsai, Oikawa Shigeru, Clark Timothy and Forrer Matthi, Tokyo Shinbun, 1996, p. 220. |
3/13/2021
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