Collection of Shunsen Portraits: Nakamura Utaemon V as Yodogimi (Shunsen Nigao-e Shu: Nakamura Utaemon V)
- Series:
- Creative Prints: Collection of Portraits of Actors (print 13 of 36)
- Medium:
- Woodblock print
Shunsen's 36-print actor series (1925–1929) was limited to ~150 subscribed copies per design — one of the smallest editions of any major shin-hanga publisher. Portraits of celebrated grand-lineage actors are the most contested at auction; the artist record is $7,575 at Bonhams New York (2020).
From the Shunsen Nigao-e Shu, this portrait shows Nakamura Utaemon V as Yodogimi, the imperious concubine of Toyotomi Hideyoshi who appears in several kabuki plays as a figure of tragic pride and ultimately futile resistance. Utaemon V was widely considered one of the greatest onnagata actors of his generation, and Shunsen's portrait captures both the grandeur of the role and the precision of Utaemon's performance: the face conveying pride, the elaborate courtly costume rendered with minute attention to pattern and surface texture.
1927
Woodblock print, ink and color on paper
歌舞伎
Woodblock print
1955
Woodblock print
1928
Color lithograph
1930
Color lithograph
Curated cross-cuts that include this print.
Collection of Shunsen Portraits: Nakamura Utaemon V as Yodogimi (Shunsen Nigao-e Shu: Nakamura Utaemon V) was created by Natori Shunsen (名取春仙).
Yes — Collection of Shunsen Portraits: Nakamura Utaemon V as Yodogimi (Shunsen Nigao-e Shu: Nakamura Utaemon V) is part of the Creative Prints: Collection of Portraits of Actors series (print 13 of 36) by Natori Shunsen.
Collection of Shunsen Portraits: Nakamura Utaemon V as Yodogimi (Shunsen Nigao-e Shu: Nakamura Utaemon V) was published by Watanabe Shozaburo.
Collection of Shunsen Portraits: Nakamura Utaemon V as Yodogimi (Shunsen Nigao-e Shu: Nakamura Utaemon V) depicts kabuki and animals.