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『北国五色墨』「おいらん」|“High-Ranking Courtesan” (Oiran), from the series Five Shades of Ink in the Northern Quarter (Hokkoku goshiki-zumi),

Kitagawa Utamaro

1794

ink

paper

From the collection of Metropolitan Museum of Art

Romanticism Ukiyo-e 18th Century Portrait Writing

Dominant colour

『北国五色墨』「おいらん」|“High-Ranking Courtesan” (Oiran), from the series Five Shades of Ink in the Northern Quarter (Hokkoku goshiki-zumi), is a 1794 ink by Kitagawa Utamaro, a Romanticism work, depicting Writing, held at Metropolitan Museum of Art.

Who painted this?: Kitagawa Utamaro
When & what style?: 1794 · Romanticism
Where can I see it?: Metropolitan Museum of Art

About this work

A woman in a towering black wig and layers of silk stands against a soft gray sky. Her robe is tied with a wide red sash, and her hands hold a folded fan. This print is one of the first to show a courtesan’s face without a smile. Utamaro used only five shades of ink—no bright colors—to keep the mood quiet and serious. The tiny white dots on her robe are actually printed with a woodblock, not painted by hand. To see more prints of Japanese women from this time, look up *women, japan*.