Itinerant female musician, from the triptych "Series of Three (Sanbantsuzuki)"

From the triptych Series of Three (Sanbantsuzuki), dated around 1830, this surimono by Katsushika Taito II shows an itinerant female musician—a torioi-onna or similar street performer—carrying a stringed instrument. The Art Institute of Chicago holds the sheet, which represents one panel of a three-print set commissioned for kyoka poetry use. Itinerant musicians appeared on the streets of Edo as professional entertainers, often associated with seasonal customs and New Year visitations, and they made attractive subjects for kyoka surimono because their costumes and instruments offered visual variety while their work tied directly to seasonal rhythms. Taito II renders the figure with the broad shoulders and confidently outlined drapery typical of his Hokusai-school training; the shikishiban surimono format allowed careful printing of the patterned kimono and the wood-grain texture of her instrument. As part of a triptych, the sheet would originally have been seen alongside two companion figures, the full set distributed by the commissioning poetry circle.