Senju, from the series "One Hundred No Dramas (Nogaku hyakuban)"

Senju is a Meiji woodblock print by Tsukioka Kogyo, published in 1893 in his celebrated series One Hundred No Dramas (Nogaku Hyakuban). The play centers on Senju no Mae, a court attendant who entertains the captive Taira warrior Shigehira on the eve of his execution, performing music and dance that lend dignity and pathos to his last hours. Kogyo, who studied under Tsukioka Yoshitoshi and Ogata Gekko, treats this elegiac subject with the restraint and clarity that distinguish noh-e from kabuki prints. The composition follows the spatial logic of the bare cedar noh stage: a low ground line, sparse setting and concentrated attention on the costumed figure. The keyblock outline preserves the silhouette of Senju's long-trained robe and her instrument, while overprinted brocade patterns and selective [bokashi](/glossary/bokashi) gradations replicate the textures of the karaori prized by Meiji patrons. A subdued palette of blues, muted reds and pale gold evokes the melancholy of the encounter without sentimentality. Kogyo's documentary authority stemmed from his unusual access to performances at the [Hosho](/glossary/hosho) and Kanze schools during the Meiji noh revival. One Hundred No Dramas, issued by Matsuki Heikichi, set a new standard for theatrical prints and became the most comprehensive printed record of late-nineteenth-century noh. The Art Institute of Chicago retains this sheet among its substantial Kogyo holdings, where it demonstrates the artist's command of color woodblock technique and his enduring contribution to noh visual culture. Source: Art Institute of Chicago (https://www.artic.edu/artworks/154639).