Tree Peony: Chozan of Chojiya (Chojiya uchi Chozan, Kao), from the series "Parodies of Floating-world Beauties as Flowers (Ukiyo bijin hana mitate)"
- Date:
- c. 1769
- Medium:
- Color woodblock print; chuban
- Source:
- Art Institute of Chicago
Tree Peony: Chozan of Chojiya, from Suzuki Harunobu's series Parodies of Floating-world Beauties as Flowers (Ukiyo bijin hana mitate), is dated 1764 and held by the Art Institute of Chicago. The series belongs to a tradition in which named Yoshiwara courtesans are paired with specific flowers, and Harunobu's mitate aligns Chozan of the Chojiya brothel with the tree peony, a luxuriant blossom often associated with imperial richness and aristocratic display. The peony's lavish form lends itself to the visual celebration of Chozan as a star of the licensed quarter, and Harunobu uses the floral analogy to amplify her social and aesthetic significance. The composition presents the named courtesan in his characteristic Edo bijin-ga manner: slender, with a small oval face, intricately patterned kimono, and the quiet poise that he favored over more theatrical poses. The patterning of her robes echoes the visual generosity of the tree peony itself, embedding the flower's character into the surface of the textile design. Issued in the period leading directly to the nishiki-e revolution of 1765, the print already shows Harunobu's command of careful registration and harmonized polychrome printing. The Art Institute of Chicago preserves this impression among its substantial holdings of Suzuki Harunobu's work, where it stands as an example of the artist's gift for transforming named courtesans into emblems that fuse Yoshiwara identity, floral symbolism, and the refined visual conventions of ukiyo-e woodblock printing.
Tree Peony: Chozan of Chojiya (Chojiya uchi Chozan, Kao), from the series "Parodies of Floating-world Beauties as Flowers (Ukiyo bijin hana mitate)" was created by Suzuki Harunobu (鈴木春信) in c. 1769.
Tree Peony: Chozan of Chojiya (Chojiya uchi Chozan, Kao), from the series "Parodies of Floating-world Beauties as Flowers (Ukiyo bijin hana mitate)" depicts birds & flowers.
