Red Lantern Shop
- Medium:
- Woodblock print
- Edition:
- Self-printed
- Source:
- Japanese Art Open Database
$500–$5,000. Common prints: $500–$1,500. Key value factors: Kitaoka's refined style has a modest but loyal collector base.
A red paper lantern (akachochin) hanging above the entrance of a shop or restaurant is one of the most recognizable signs in the traditional Japanese commercial landscape — its warm glow promising food, drink, and shelter. Kitaoka renders the subject with the formal attention he brought to all his work: the lantern's rounded form glowing in the frame of the composition, the surrounding architectural elements of the shop providing geometric counterpoint. The red lantern as subject belongs to his broader interest in the intersection of commerce, community, and traditional visual culture.
Woodblock print
c. 1833/34
Color woodblock print; oban
c. 1922
Color woodblock print
行商人
c. 1940
Color woodblock print
Curated cross-cuts that include this print.
Red Lantern Shop was created by Fumio Kitaoka (北岡文雄).
Red Lantern Shop depicts market scenes and daily life.
