Bungoro in the Dressing Room

This print depicts the Bunraku puppeteer Yoshida Bungoro in the backstage dressing room, one of Sekino's sustained series documenting Japanese traditional performing arts. Sekino made repeated visits to Bunraku performances, gaining access to performers and backstage environments rarely depicted in printmaking. The dressing room setting allows for an intimate, informal treatment distinct from his onstage theater subjects, likely showing the puppeteer surrounded by tools, puppet heads, or costuming elements. Sekino's portrait technique employs strong contour line with selective color areas to convey psychological presence, consistent with his broader approach to figure portraiture in the sosaku-hanga tradition.