$2,000–$15,000. Common prints: $2,000–$4,000. Key value factors: Kitano's sensuous Osaka-style bijin-ga have strong collector demand. His paintings command significantly higher prices.
Fujimusume, or the Wisteria Maiden, is a famous solo dance from the kabuki repertoire in which a young woman, the spirit of a wisteria flower, expresses longing for an unrequited love. The dancer wears a distinctive costume featuring cascading wisteria blossoms and performs with a branch of wisteria, creating a visual fusion of woman and flower. Tsunetomi's oban-format woodblock print captures this beloved stage character with the sensitivity of an artist who was deeply familiar with Osaka's kabuki and bunraku traditions. The Wisteria Maiden's combination of beauty, melancholy, and botanical symbolism made her an ideal subject for bijin-ga treatment, allowing Tsunetomi to unite his interests in female portraiture, theatrical costume, and the seasonal associations that wisteria carries as a late-spring flower.
Wakasa Kugushiko
1920
Color woodblock print; oban
Woodblock print
1934
Color woodblock print; oban
n.d.
Woodblock print; ishizuri-e, section of harimaze sheet
Curated cross-cuts that include this print.
Fujimusume was created by Kitano Tsunetomi (北野恒富).
Fujimusume was published by Watanabe Shozaburo.
Fujimusume depicts landscapes, figures, and kabuki.
