Shunga 2

[Shunga](/glossary/shunga) (春画, spring pictures) constitute a recognized category of Japanese woodblock print production that ran from the early Edo period through the Meiji era. These prints depicted erotic subjects and were produced by artists across all major schools, typically in small-format albums (ehon) or as individual sheets. Shuntei's shunga, numbered as part of a sequence, would follow conventions of the genre: intimate interior settings, richly patterned textile on partially undressed figures, and the characteristic compression of pictorial space that heightens physical presence. Late-Meiji shunga prints often retained the elaborate kimono rendering and detailed textile pattern work that distinguished quality commercial woodblock printing, while depicting subjects outside the sanctioned public print trade.