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Tonegawa koiryo 利根川鯉漁 / Bijin meisho awase 美人名所合 by Ogata Gekko — Japanese Woodblock print

Tonegawa koiryo 利根川鯉漁 / Bijin meisho awase 美人名所合

by Ogata Gekko

Medium:
Woodblock print
Image courtesy of
British Museum

Description

This print by Ogata Gekko (1859–1920) belongs to a bijin meisho awase format — compositions pairing a fashionably dressed woman with a named famous place — here the Tonegawa River in the Kantō region, one of Japan's major waterways and historically important for fishing and transport. The subject depicted is carp fishing (koiryo), a recognized seasonal and regional activity along the Tonegawa. Gekko worked across bijin-ga, musha-e, and kacho-e genres, frequently combining figure and landscape in a single composition during the Meiji period. The bijin likely appears in the foreground dressed in coordinated seasonal kimono, while fishermen or nets on the river establish the meisho element. Gekko's line work shows slightly more Western-influenced draftsmanship than classical ukiyo-e predecessors, and his prints were issued in ōban format by multiple Meiji publishers.

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Frequently Asked Questions

Tonegawa koiryo 利根川鯉漁 / Bijin meisho awase 美人名所合 was created by Ogata Gekko (尾形月耕).

Tonegawa koiryo 利根川鯉漁 / Bijin meisho awase 美人名所合 depicts animals.