Bathing in Early Summer
by Ito Shinsui
- Medium:
- Woodblock print
- Format:
- Oban
- Publisher:
- Watanabe Shozaburo
- Edition:
- Published by Watanabe Shozaburo
- Source:
by Ito Shinsui
Shinsui is Japan's preeminent shin-hanga bijin-ga master. His "Modern Beauties" and related series remain in strong demand, with provenance from notable collections (Freddie Mercury's collection appeared at Sotheby's 2023) adding premium value.
A woman bathes in early summer, the season's warmth making the outdoor or open bath a pleasure rather than an ordeal, her nude or semi-nude figure captured in the uninhibited relaxation of the washing ritual. The summer bathing subject—nakedly sensory in its engagement with heat, water, and the body—appears several times in Shinsui's [bijin-ga](/glossary/bijin-ga), and his treatment combines the classical tradition of beauty-in-the-bath imagery with the more naturalistic observation style of the [shin-hanga](/glossary/shin-hanga) period.
Mutsu Tsuta onsen
1919
Color woodblock print; oban
1943
Color woodblock print
Autumn 1920
Woodblock print, ink and color on paper
1924
Color woodblock print
Curated cross-cuts that include this print.
Bathing in Early Summer was created by Ito Shinsui (伊東深水).
Bathing in Early Summer was published by Watanabe Shozaburo.
Bathing in Early Summer depicts nude and summer.
