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Tsukioka Yoshitoshi
Osame, a Concubine of the Lord of Sendai Fief, Learning Courtesanship

Osame, a Concubine of the Lord of Sendai Fief, Learning Courtesanship by Tsukioka Yoshitoshi — Japanese Woodblock print, 1886

Osame, a Concubine of the Lord of Sendai Fief, Learning Courtesanship

by Tsukioka Yoshitoshi

Meiji/Taishō Prints Ukiyo-e

Date:: 1886
Medium:: Woodblock print
Format:: Oban
Source:: Art Gallery of Greater Victoria

Typical Price

Fine beauty print from late Meiji career in excellent condition: $1,000–$5,000
Good condition beauty subject: $400–$1,500
Standard impression: $200–$600

Description

"Osame, a Concubine of the Lord of Sendai Fief, Learning Courtesanship" (1886) depicts a historical woman of high social status who was forced by circumstances to learn the arts of the pleasure quarter. The story combines personal tragedy with social commentary on the vulnerability of women to sudden reversals of fortune in a hierarchical society. Yoshitoshi's treatment of such female subjects during the 1880s demonstrates his characteristic combination of narrative specificity and psychological empathy.

More Prints by Tsukioka Yoshitoshi

Shunkan Watching Enviously from Kikai Island as Yasuyori Returns to the Capitol after Being Unexpectedly Pardoned (Shunkan sozu Kikaigashima ni oite tamatama Yasuyori no shamen senbo kito no zu) by Tsukioka Yoshitoshi

Shunkan Watching Enviously from Kikai Island as Yasuyori Returns to the Capitol after Being Unexpectedly Pardoned (Shunkan sozu Kikaigashima ni oite tamatama Yasuyori no shamen senbo kito no zu)

Looking as if She Wants to Go for a Walk: The Fashion of a Married Woman of the Meiji Era (Yūho ga shitasō, Meiji nenkan saikun no fūzoku), from the series Thirty-two Appearances of Fashion (Fūzoku sanjūni sō) by Tsukioka Yoshitoshi

Looking as if She Wants to Go for a Walk: The Fashion of a Married Woman of the Meiji Era (Yūho ga shitasō, Meiji nenkan saikun no fūzoku), from the series Thirty-two Appearances of Fashion (Fūzoku sanjūni sō)

Slovenly (Shidaranasaso), from the series "Thirty-two Aspects of Women (Fuzoku sanjuniso)" by Tsukioka Yoshitoshi

Slovenly (Shidaranasaso), from the series "Thirty-two Aspects of Women (Fuzoku sanjuniso)"

1888

Color woodblock print; oban

Four PM, from the series "Twenty-Four Hours in Shinbashi and Yanagibashi" by Tsukioka Yoshitoshi

Four PM, from the series "Twenty-Four Hours in Shinbashi and Yanagibashi"

n.d.

Color woodblock print

More Music Prints

A dancing girl, maiko, in winter by Hasegawa Sadanobu III

A dancing girl, maiko, in winter

Woodblock print

Shamyris, Shôwa period, dated 1965? by Hideo Hagiwara

Shamyris, Shôwa period, dated 1965?

Woodblock print

Lesson in Japanese Dancing by Takeji Asano

Lesson in Japanese Dancing

Woodblock print

Dance of Eternal Love by Toshi Yoshida

Dance of Eternal Love

Woodblock print

Featured in Collections

Curated cross-cuts that include this print.

Bijin-ga: Japanese Beauty Prints

Frequently Asked Questions

Osame, a Concubine of the Lord of Sendai Fief, Learning Courtesanship was created by Tsukioka Yoshitoshi (月岡芳年) in 1886.

Osame, a Concubine of the Lord of Sendai Fief, Learning Courtesanship depicts music, figures, and bijin-ga.