from the series One Hundred Pictures by Kyôsai (Kyôsai hyakuzu)

This sheet from the Kyôsai hyakuzu belongs to the tradition of skeletal imagery that runs from Toriyama Sekien's yōkai encyclopedias through Kuniyoshi's animated skeleton compositions to Kyosai's own interpretations. A skeleton subject in this series might show the bones of a warrior or courtier engaged in an activity — drinking, playing music, pursuing an adversary — that contrasts the morbid vehicle with an incongruously lively action. The anatomical precision of the skeleton reflects Kyosai's study of both Western medical illustration and classical Japanese depictions of impermanence in Buddhist visual culture. The key block cutting would follow the articulated structure of bones with a fidelity that required a skilled carver, while color blocks might supply the remnants of clothing or the warm tones of candlelight against which the skeletal form reads. The compositional strategy, placing death in an animated, purposeful posture, is characteristic of Kyosai's approach to difficult subject matter.