Utagawa Kuniyoshi

UTAGAWA KUNIYOSHI (Japan, 1797 - 1861).
"Tametomo homare no jikketsu", ca.1850.
Ukiyo-e color engraving.
With signatures and inscriptions.
It shows wear and flaws in the paper.
Measurements: 35 x 24 cm; 43 x 32 cm (frame).

The work represents the legendary warrior Minamoto no Tametomo, known for his formidable strength. In this scene, Tametomo exerts great physical strength, lifting a large wooden beam.

Utagawa Kuniyoshi was one of the last masters of Japanese ukiyo-e, belonging to the Utagawa school. He trained with Toyokuni, and established himself independently in 1814 under the name Kuniyoshi. He made illustrations for books of different genres, and also printed independent prints with landscapes and portraits of actors and warriors. Today his prints are preserved in the most important art galleries in the world, including the Hermitage Museum in St. Petersburg and the British Museum in London.

The images of ukiyo-e ("floating world"), or Japanese woodblock prints, are color works produced in Japan since the 17th century, illustrating landscapes, themes of the theater or pleasure houses, genre scenes, folklore, etc., often starring famous actors and geisha. Although ukiyo-e enjoyed its greatest popularity in Japan during the second half of the 17th century, in Europe it was discovered at the end of the 19th century, when some artists, such as Van Gogh, noticed the paper, illustrated prints, that wrapped porcelain and other merchandise brought from Japan. Since then, these prints began to be collected, which fascinated the Western artist for their radically different concept, their essentiality and expressive force, and which represented a true revolution for European art, marking a before and after in its evolution.