The Greatest Beauties of Our Time (Toji zensei bijin zoroe): Somenosuke of the Matsubaya with Attendants Wakagi and Wakaba

Medium:: Woodblock print
Source:: Art Institute of Chicago
Image courtesy of: Art Institute of Chicago

Description

This ukiyo-e print by Kitagawa Utamaro portrays a scene titled "The Greatest Beauties of Our Time (Toji zensei bijin zoroe): Somenosuke of the Matsubaya with Attendants Wakagi and Wakaba". Created during the Edo period, this work exemplifies the bijin-ga tradition of idealized feminine beauty that was central to Japanese printmaking.

Kitagawa Utamaro brings characteristic refinement to this composition, capturing not merely outward appearance but the inner grace and poise of the subject. The careful attention to textile patterns, hairstyle, and gesture reveals the artist's deep understanding of visual storytelling through subtle detail.

This print represents Kitagawa Utamaro's contribution to the ukiyo-e tradition during the Edo period. As with all works by this artist, it reflects both individual artistic vision and the broader cultural moment in which it was created. For collectors and admirers of Japanese printmaking, it offers a window into the sophisticated aesthetic world that produced some of the most beloved images in art history.

More Prints by Kitagawa Utamaro

A Low Class Prostitute (Gun [teppo]), from the series “Five Shades of Ink in the Northern Quarter" ("Hokkoku goshiki-zumi")

c. 1794/95

Color woodblock print; oban

Woman Holding a Fan (from the series Ten Aspects of the Physiognomy of Women)

c. 1793

color woodblock print

Akashi of the Tamaya, from the series Seven Komachis of Yoshiwara (Seiro nana Komachi) (Tamaya uchi Akashi, Uraji, Shimano)

Woodblock print

Hour of the Tiger (Tora no koku = 4 AM) from the series Twelve Hours in Yoshiwara (Seirô jûni toki tsuzuki), Late Edo period, circa 1794

Woodblock print

More Landscapes Prints

Lake Kugushi in Wakasa Province (Wakasa Kugushiko), from the series Souvenirs of Travel I (Tabi miyage dai isshu)"

Wakasa Kugushiko

1920

Color woodblock print; oban

Autumn Maple Leaves at Takao, from the album Eight Views of Kyoto (Kyôto hakkei)

Woodblock print

The Beach at Kaiganji in Sanuki Province (Sanuki Kaiganji no hama), from the series "Collection of Views of Japan II, Kansai Edition (Nihon fukei shu II Kansai hen)"

1934

Color woodblock print; oban

Tea Kettle, section of a sheet from the series "Mirror of Stone Rubbings of Views of the Provinces" (Kohon meihitsu ishizuri kagami)

n.d.

Woodblock print; ishizuri-e, section of harimaze sheet

Featured in Collections

Curated cross-cuts that include this print.

Mount Fuji in Japanese Woodblock Prints Meisho-e: Famous-Place Prints

Frequently Asked Questions

The Greatest Beauties of Our Time (Toji zensei bijin zoroe): Somenosuke of the Matsubaya with Attendants Wakagi and Wakaba was created by Kitagawa Utamaro (喜多川歌麿).

The Greatest Beauties of Our Time (Toji zensei bijin zoroe): Somenosuke of the Matsubaya with Attendants Wakagi and Wakaba depicts landscapes.