The Actor Ichikawa Komazo as a Woman with Dishevelled Hair
- Date:
- c. 1791
- Medium:
- Color woodblock print; hosoban
- Format:
- Hosoban
- Source:
Hokusai's actor portraits (yakusha-e) represent his early career in the Katsukawa school tradition. While less celebrated than his landscapes, early impressions with strong color are sought by collectors of Edo-period theater imagery.
The kabuki actor Ichikawa Komazō is depicted in the [hosoban](/glossary/hosoban) format in the dramatic guise of a woman with disheveled hair — a classic aragoto or supernatural female character type associated with grief, jealousy, or vengeful possession. Produced around 1791, the print belongs to Hokusai's early output within the Katsukawa school actor-print tradition, showing his command of the genre's conventions for conveying theatrical emotion through pose and costume.
1821
Color woodblock print with metallic pigments; surimono shikishiban
1822
Color woodblock print; shikishiban, surimono
1822
Color woodblock print; shikishiban, surimono
c. 1832
Color woodblock print; oban
歌舞伎
Woodblock print
1955
Woodblock print
1928
Color lithograph
1930
Color lithograph
Curated cross-cuts that include this print.
The Actor Ichikawa Komazo as a Woman with Dishevelled Hair was created by Katsushika Hokusai (葛飾北斎) in c. 1791.
The Actor Ichikawa Komazo as a Woman with Dishevelled Hair depicts kabuki and bijin-ga.