Artwork

東洲斎写楽画三世坂田半五郎の藤川水右衛門『花菖蒲文禄曽我』|Sakata Hangorō III as Fujikawa Mizuemon in the Play "Hana Ayame Bunroku Soga"

東洲斎写楽画三世坂田半五郎の藤川水右衛門『花菖蒲文禄曽我』|Sakata Hangorō III as Fujikawa Mizuemon in the Play "Hana Ayame Bunroku Soga" is an ink print by the Romanticist artist Tōshūsai Sharaku. It dates from 1794 and is held in the collection of the Metropolitan Museum of Art.

Accession no.: JP1522
Credit line: Fletcher Fund, 1912

About this work

Look up other prints of men, actors, japan to see how Sharaku turned stage faces into sharp, dramatic art.

You see a man in a fierce pose, one arm raised, face twisted in anger. His robe swirls with bold patterns, and his hair sticks up like flames. The background shimmers with tiny silver flakes, mica ground, that catch the light.

Sharaku made these prints fast, like movie posters. This one shows an actor playing a hot-headed character in a 1794 play. The prints were cheap, sold to fans outside the theater. Most were thrown away; only about 150 survive.

Look up other prints of men, actors, japan to see how Sharaku turned stage faces into sharp, dramatic art.

Subject & Meaning

The print portrays the kabuki actor Sakata Hangorō III in the role of Fujikawa Mizuemon from the play "Hana Ayame Bunroku Soga." As a yakusha-e (actor portrait) in the ōkubi-e format, the work focuses on a tightly cropped bust-length depiction of the actor, emphasizing facial expression and costume over narrative context. The mica ground lends the surface a shimmering quality characteristic of late-eighteenth-century Edo actor prints, heightening the theatrical visual impact.

The subject is rendered as a man, with the actor's identity and stage role jointly communicated through the title inscription. By isolating the performer in this enlarged-head format, the composition directs attention to the conventions of kabuki characterization associated with the role of Mizuemon within the "Hana Ayame Bunroku Soga" production.

Technique & Style

The print is a woodblock work produced in 1794, employing ink and color applied to paper laid over a mica ground. It belongs to the ukiyo-e tradition, specifically the ōkubi-e portrait genre, and was printed to capture the dynamic presence of Sakata Hangorō III in the role of Fujikawa Mizuemon. The composition emphasizes sharp line work and vivid pigments, typical of Sharaku’s caricature-like rendering of kabuki actors.

History & Provenance

The print was produced in Edo (present-day Tokyo) in 1794, the year Sharaku’s active period is documented.

It entered the collection of the Metropolitan Museum of Art by 1911, when it was accessioned as part of the Rogers Fund acquisition.

The woodblock print Sakata Hangorō III as Fujikawa Mizuemon in the Play "Hana Ayame Bunroku Soga" by Tōshūsai Sharaku is held in the collection of the Metropolitan Museum of Art. Created in 1794, this ōkubi-e portrait depicts the actor Sakata Hangorō III in the role of Fujikawa Mizuemon. The work is cataloged within the museum's holdings of ukiyo-e and nishiki-e prints, representing a significant example of Sharaku's brief but influential career during the Bunroku era.

Overview

This woodblock print, created by Tōshūsai Sharaku in 1794, depicts Sakata Hangorō III as Fujikawa Mizuemon in the play 'Hana Ayame Bunroku Soga'. The print is characterized by its dynamic pose and expressive facial features, set against a shimmering background.