Who painted Untitled?

Untitled was painted by Tōshūsai Sharaku 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 Tōshūsai Sharaku (1794) · Meaning & Museum

About this work

His robe swirls with bold red and black patterns, and his hands clutch a fan.

Here’s a man on stage, face half-lit, mouth open like he’s shouting. His robe swirls with bold red and black patterns, and his hands clutch a fan.

Sharaku made this in just ten months, 1794 to 1795, then vanished. No one knows why. The print shows an actor mid-performance, but it’s not a flattering portrait. The exaggerated features feel almost modern, like a cartoon.

If you like this, look up actors. They’re everywhere in Sharaku’s work.

Subject & Meaning

This 1794 woodblock print by Tōshūsai Sharaku functions as a yakusha-e, a portrait within the ukiyo-e genre depicting the actor Yamashita Kinsaku II. The composition features the performer alongside figures of a man and a woman, capturing a specific theatrical moment or character dynamic. As a nishiki-e, the work utilizes full-color printing to render these subjects, serving as a visual record of Kabuki performance rather than conveying abstract symbolism. The image represents the intersection of individual celebrity and dramatic narrative prevalent in late eighteenth-century Japanese theater.

Technique & Style

The work is a single sheet of a possible triptych printed in ink and color on paper, representing a portrait in the ukiyo-e genre. It depicts the actor Yamashita Kinsaku II, rendered with bold linework and flat areas of color characteristic of Sharaku's style, emphasizing exaggerated facial features and dramatic expression. The print is part of the Metropolitan Museum of Art collection and exemplifies nishiki-e techniques typical of late 18th-century Japanese woodblock production.

History & Provenance

Tōshūsai Sharaku produced this untitled woodblock print in 1794, during the brief period in which he was active as an ukiyo-e artist. The work, possibly one sheet of a triptych, depicts the kabuki actor Yamashita Kinsaku II alongside a male and female figure. It is now held in the collection of the Metropolitan Museum of Art.

The sources do not provide further details on a commissioning patron, intermediate ownership, or acquisition history prior to the work entering the Metropolitan Museum of Art's holdings.

Overview

This woodblock print, untitled and likely a single sheet from a larger triptych, was produced in 1794 by the enigmatic Edo‑period artist Tōshūsai Sharaku. Executed with ink and color on paper, the image captures a theatrical figure in a moment of heightened expression, characteristic of Sharaku’s brief but intense period of activity.

Context

The image belongs to a broader body of Sharaku’s work that focuses on kabuki actors, a popular subject in late‑eighteenth‑century Japanese print culture. By portraying performers with stark, sometimes unflattering realism, Sharaku offered a counterpoint to the more idealised actor portraits prevalent among his contemporaries.