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Taking a Branch with Flowers (1) by Miyagawa Shuntei — Japanese Woodblock print

Taking a Branch with Flowers (1)

by Miyagawa Shuntei

Medium:
Woodblock print
Source:
Ohmi Gallery
Image courtesy of
Ohmi Gallery

Description

A bijin-ga showing a woman holding or breaking a flowering branch — likely plum or cherry — from a garden tree. This subject belongs to a long tradition of depicting women in proximity to seasonal flowers, where the floral element serves both decorative and symbolic functions: blossoms are associated with feminine beauty and transience in Japanese aesthetic convention. Shuntei would have positioned the figure beneath or beside the flowering branch, with the blooms rendered through careful overprinting of pink and white pigments to achieve the layered tonal variation of petals. The '(1)' designation indicates a companion composition. The format likely follows the standard vertical ōban sheet proportions common in Meiji single-sheet bijin-ga printing.

More Prints by Miyagawa Shuntei

Frequently Asked Questions

Taking a Branch with Flowers (1) was created by Miyagawa Shuntei (宮川春汀).