Who painted Untitled?

Untitled was painted by Kitagawa Utamaro in 1794.

Where can I see Untitled?

Untitled is held by Metropolitan Museum of Art.

What movement is Untitled?

Untitled is associated with Romanticism.

Untitled by Kitagawa Utamaro (1794) · Meaning & Museum

Accession no.: JP1672
Credit line: H. O. Havemeyer Collection, Bequest of Mrs. H. O. Havemeyer, 1929

About this work

Technique & Style

The scene includes specific details such as sewing boxes, a needle, scissors, and a cat, illustrating Utamaro's focus on intimate, everyday subjects.

Created in 1790, this work is a woodblock print executed in ink and color on paper. It functions as a single sheet within a larger triptych composition. The piece measures 38.4 cm in height and 25.9 cm in width.

Stylistically, the print belongs to the ukiyo-e genre and depicts a semi-nude figure engaged in domestic activities. The scene includes specific details such as sewing boxes, a needle, scissors, and a cat, illustrating Utamaro's focus on intimate, everyday subjects.

History & Provenance

The work titled Untitled was created by Kitagawa Utamaro in 1790 as a single sheet from a triptych of woodblock prints. It depicts a semi-nude figure with sewing boxes, scissors, and a sewing needle, alongside a cat. The print is part of the collection of the Metropolitan Museum of Art, where it is catalogued as a ukiyo-e genre work on paper using ink. Its dimensions measure 38.4 cm in height and 25.9 cm in width, corresponding to the date recorded in its creation history.

The work is held in the collection of the Metropolitan Museum of Art, where it is cataloged under the accession number 2007.215. It was created by Kitagawa Utamaro in 1790 as a woodblock print depicting a semi‑nude figure with sewing boxes, scissors, and a sewing needle. The piece measures 38.4 cm in height and 25.9 cm in width and belongs to the ukiyo‑e genre of Japanese prints.

Context

The work is classified as a ukiyo-e woodblock print depicting a semi-nude scene with sewing implements, reflecting Kitagawa Utamaro’s engagement with contemporary Japanese urban life and gendered labor. Scholarship emphasizes its role within the triptych format of late 18th-century Edo-period print culture, situating it amid broader discussions of eroticism and domestic craft in ukiyo-e. The piece is housed in the Metropolitan Museum of Art, underscoring its recognized significance within Western art historical narratives of non-Western modernities.

Overview

This woodblock print is one part of a triptych created by Kitagawa Utamaro around 1794. It is printed in ink and color on paper.

Subject & Meaning

The print depicts an intimate scene: a woman in a patterned robe trims a cat's claws with scissors, while another woman observes from behind, holding a spool of thread. The moment captured is a quiet, everyday activity.