Benkei

Benkei stands alone in this 1980 woodblock print — not a specific actor's interpretation but the character himself, the warrior-monk of legend who served Minamoto no Yoshitsune with ferocious loyalty. Benkei is said to have collected weapons from defeated opponents, fought standing up even after death, and wept openly when forced to strike his own lord to maintain a disguise at the Ataka barrier. By depicting Benkei outside a particular performance, Kokei engages with the character as an archetype: the figure's massive frame, the checkered pattern of his robe, and the fierce expression belong to the collective theatrical imagination rather than to any single actor's portrayal.