The Tayu (High-ranking Courtesan)
- Medium:
- Woodblock print on ganpi paper with mica
- Dimensions:
- 40 × 59.1 cm
- Image courtesy of
- Ronin Gallery
Description
Printed on translucent ganpi paper with a kirazuri mica ground, this print depicts a tayu—a courtesan of the highest rank in the Edo pleasure quarters—as embodied by a kabuki onnagata. The mica surface produces a subtle iridescence that echoes the layered silks and elaborate kanzashi hairpins associated with tayu regalia, the most formal and expensive dress in the licensed quarter's hierarchy. Kokei draws on the bijin-ga lineage of Utamaro and Eishi while grounding the image in stage reality rather than idealized portraiture. Ganpi paper, finer and more lustrous than standard washi, was chosen to complement the shimmering mica and reinforce the opulence of the subject. The print demonstrates Kokei's command of luxury printing techniques alongside his primary vocation as a kabuki image-maker.
More Prints by Tsuruya Kokei
Kataoka Nizaemon XIII as Ishikawa Goemon in the play Sanmon Gosan no Kiri
Mokuhanga (Japanese woodblock)
Onoe Baiko VII as Masaoka 七世尾上梅幸の乳人政岡 / Bust portraits VIII (Design 4) 第八期大首絵シリーズの４
Woodblock print
Ichikawa Danshiro IV as Akushichibyoe Kagekiyo
Woodblock print on ganpi paper with mica
Benkei
Woodblock print
More Kabuki Prints
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歌舞伎
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Onoe Shoroku II as the tattooed villain Danshichi
1955
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View of Kabuki Theater from Matsuya (Ginza Matsuya yori Kabukiza), no. 3 from the series "Pictures of Ginza, First Series (Gashu Ginza dai isshu)"
1928
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Distant View of Mitsukoshi Movie Theater in Shinjuku from the Sixth Floor of Hoteiya (Hoteiya rokkai kara Shinjuku Mitsukoshi Musashi no kan enbo zu), no. 1 from the series "Scenery of Shinjuku (Gashu Shinjuku fukei)"
1930
Color lithograph
Featured in Collections
Curated cross-cuts that include this print.
Frequently Asked Questions
The Tayu (High-ranking Courtesan) was created by Tsuruya Kokei (弦屋光溪).
The Tayu (High-ranking Courtesan) depicts kabuki.
The Tayu (High-ranking Courtesan) measures 40 × 59.1 cm.