Animals Prints (865)
Animal subjects in Japanese woodblock prints extend well beyond the birds-and-flowers genre to encompass a wide range of creatures — horses, cats, fish, insects, rabbits, foxes, and mythological beasts — each carrying distinct cultural associations and artistic challenges. Animals appear as primary subjects, as symbolic elements within larger compositions, and as characters in narrative prints drawn from folklore and literature. Cats and tigers were favored subjects of Utagawa Kuniyoshi, whose playful cat prints and dramatic tiger compositions influenced generations of artists. Horse prints documented both the practical role of horses in Japanese transportation and warfare and their symbolic associations with strength and nobility. Fish prints, particularly carp, carried auspicious connotations and demanded technical virtuosity in rendering scales and aquatic movement through woodblock carving. Mythological animals — dragons, kirin, phoenixes, and the fox spirits (kitsune) of Japanese folklore — provided opportunities for dramatic, imaginative compositions unconstrained by naturalistic observation. The sosaku-hanga movement brought new approaches to animal subjects, with artists like Tokuriki Tomikichiro and Saito Kiyoshi creating stylized animal prints that balanced decorative design with observed natural form.
Artists Known for Animals
Kimono—Shishi to Ryu (Lion and Dragon)
2012
Mezzotint diptych
Circus - Trapeze and animal tamer. (11/20)
Woodblock print
Water Dragon Chronicle
Woodblock print
Lying Dragon Sakura — 臥龍桜
1996
Woodblock print
Mitate No.25 - Happy Dog (Yorokobi-inu)
2000
A Horse
1959
Color woodblock print with metal leaf; edition 45/50
Blue Horse
Woodblock print
Horse
1963
Color woodblock print; edition 24/65
Horse in Armor- A
Woodblock print
Horse in the Wind
1959
Color woodblock print; edition 80/80
Red Horse
Woodblock print
![Untitled [Horse] by Tadashi Nakayama](https://1.api.artsmia.org/800/132718.jpg)
Untitled [Horse]
1968
Woodblock print, ink and color on paper
Horse
1957
Woodblock print, ink on paper
Boy Holding a Cat
1957
Woodblock print
Girl with Cat
1957
Color woodblock print
Lovesick Cat
20th century
Color woodblock print; edition 90/100
My Family, Dog and Cat
1957
Woodblock print
Cat and Goldfish
c. 1928–1930
Woodblock print, ink and color on paper
Dancing Fox
1900–1910s
Color woodblock print
Fox by the Moonlit Water
c. 1928–1930
Woodblock print, ink and color on paper
Frog in Rain
c. 1928–1930
Woodblock print, ink and color on paper
Monkey Catching a Bee
c. 1928–1930
Woodblock print, ink and color on paper
Pug Dog
c. 1928–1930
Woodblock print, ink and color on paper
Cat with Bell
Woodblock print
Woman Seated on a Pillow Reading a Letter While a Cat Sleeps Behind Her, Taishô period, dated 1918 (9th month of Taishô 9)
Taishô period, 1912-1926
Woodblock print
Ox
Woodblock print
Ox Cart in Grand Canyon
Not set
Woodblock print
Horse (C)
1960
woodblock print
Standing Horse
Woodblock print
Unknown, horse
Woodblock print
'Night Falls, a Dog Howls Deep in the Mountains, the God of the Hunt Appears', from Ryuri Hanga Saku
1959
Woodblock print
Cat, from the series "Steady Gaze" ("Gyoshi")
1943
Color woodblock print
Cat (Neko), from the series Steady Gaze (Gyôshi)
1958
Wood block for printing
Dog, Dachshund 2
Woodblock print
![Hokkaidô B [Horse and Plow], Shôwa period, dated 1961 by Saito Kiyoshi](https://data.ukiyo-e.org/harvard/images/HUAM-CARP07350.jpg)
Hokkaidô B [Horse and Plow], Shôwa period, dated 1961
Woodblock print
Ox and Man
Woodblock print
Image No. 7: Black cat (c)
Woodblock print
Bird in Plum Tree (Year of the Snake)
1929
Woodcut print
Greek Nude and Tang Period Flying Horse (Rafu To Temma)
1974
Woodblock print
Horse and Rider, from roof tile
1935
Woodblock print
Horse Pulling Carriage with Drive, from roof tile
1935
Woodblock print
Leaping Deer
1928
Woodblock print
Song Dynasty Three-Color Glazed Plate with Rabbit Design (So sansai tomonzara)
1944
Hand-colored woodblock print
Toy Camel (Gangu no rakuda)
1967
Woodblock print
Saint George and the Dragon
Woodblock print
Tiger Lilies
Woodblock print
Cat and Three Kittens
1960
Woodblock print, ink and color on paper
Girl with rabbit
Woodblock print
A Boy And His Dog
Woodblock print
![Title unknown [Man with dog] by Umetaro Azechi](https://1.api.artsmia.org/800/135492.jpg)
Title unknown [Man with dog]
1956
Woodblock print, ink and color on paper
No. 8 Inu (No. 8 Dog), Shôwa period, dated 1976
Woodblock print
Cat and Ball
Woodblock print
Fox-fire of the Twenty-four Paragons of Filial Piety
1892 (this edition Feb. 1902)
Woodblock print (nishiki-e), ink and color on paper
Nine-Tailed-Turtle Tao Zongwang
1868, 7th lunar month
Preparatory drawing for a print, ink and color on paper
Picture of Kusunoki Tamonmaru Conquering the Old Badger
1860, 4th lunar month
Woodblock print (nishiki-e), ink and color on paper
Priest Raigo of Miidera Transforming into a Vengeful Rat
1891
Woodblock print (nishiki-e), ink and color on paper
Saigo Takamori with his Dog
1888
Woodblock print
'The fox woman of Suwa in Shinano'
19th century
The Old Badger from the series "New Forms of Thirty-Six Ghosts"
1889
Color woodblock print
A Dutchman Capturing a Ferocious Tiger Alive (Ranjin môko o iketoru zu)
Woodblock print
Related Subjects
Frequently Asked Questions
Animal subjects in Japanese woodblock prints extend well beyond the birds-and-flowers genre to encompass a wide range of creatures — horses, cats, fish, insects, rabbits, foxes, and mythological beasts — each carrying distinct cultural associations and artistic challenges. Animals appear as primary subjects, as symbolic elements within larger compositions, and as characters in narrative prints drawn from folklore and literature.
Ishiwata Koitsu, Ohara Koson, and Jun'ichiro Sekino are among the artists most associated with animals in our collection. Browse the full list of artists who explored this subject above.
Hanga currently catalogues 865 prints tagged with animals, spanning ukiyo-e, shin-hanga, and sōsaku-hanga traditions where applicable.