House of Pleasure on the Hill (Oka no seirô)
Description
A house of pleasure on a hill — "Oka no seiro" — overlooks the world below in this composition by Yumeji, the elevated position of the establishment giving it a simultaneous prominence and isolation. The pleasure quarter, set on a hill above the everyday city, occupies an ambiguous position in the social geography of Taisho Japan: visible from below, commanding its own view, but separated from ordinary life by both altitude and the specialized nature of its commerce. Yumeji, who inhabited the border between respectable society and its pleasures, understood this ambiguity.
More Prints by Takehisa Yumeji
More Landscapes Prints
Lake Kugushi in Wakasa Province (Wakasa Kugushiko), from the series Souvenirs of Travel I (Tabi miyage dai isshu)"
Wakasa Kugushiko
1920
Color woodblock print; oban
Autumn Maple Leaves at Takao, from the album Eight Views of Kyoto (Kyôto hakkei)
Woodblock print
The Beach at Kaiganji in Sanuki Province (Sanuki Kaiganji no hama), from the series "Collection of Views of Japan II, Kansai Edition (Nihon fukei shu II Kansai hen)"
1934
Color woodblock print; oban
Tea Kettle, section of a sheet from the series "Mirror of Stone Rubbings of Views of the Provinces" (Kohon meihitsu ishizuri kagami)
n.d.
Woodblock print; ishizuri-e, section of harimaze sheet
Featured in Collections
Curated cross-cuts that include this print.
Frequently Asked Questions
House of Pleasure on the Hill (Oka no seirô) was created by Takehisa Yumeji (竹久夢二).
House of Pleasure on the Hill (Oka no seirô) depicts landscapes, bijin-ga, and architecture.