Bijin-ga Prints (1084)
Bijin-ga — literally "pictures of beautiful people" — is one of the foundational genres of Japanese woodblock printmaking. The tradition dates to the earliest days of ukiyo-e, when artists like Hishikawa Moronobu and later Kitagawa Utamaro elevated portrayals of women from simple illustrations to sophisticated studies of beauty, fashion, and personality. Utamaro's bust portraits of the 1790s, which isolated individual faces against plain backgrounds, were revolutionary in their psychological depth and compositional daring. His contemporaries Chobunsai Eishi and Torii Kiyonaga developed complementary approaches, emphasizing graceful full-length figures in elaborate settings. The genre documented the changing ideals of feminine beauty across centuries, from the rounded features favored in the Edo period to the elongated elegance of the Meiji era. The shin-hanga revival of the early twentieth century produced a final flowering of bijin-ga, with artists like Ito Shinsui, Torii Kotondo, and Hashiguchi Goyo creating some of the genre's most refined works. These artists brought Western-influenced light and shadow to traditional subjects, producing prints that are among the most sought-after in the Japanese print market today. Bijin-ga prints are prized for their technical virtuosity, particularly the rendering of fabric patterns, hair arrangements, and subtle skin tones achieved through multiple woodblock impressions.
Artists Known for Bijin-ga
Untitled (uemura-shoen)
Woodblock print
Elegant Pleasures: The Scent of Flowers, left (Furyu hana no ka asobi, ge)
c. 1783
Color woodblock print; left sheet of oban diptych
Lady No. 9
1975
Woodblock print, ink and color on paper
Hanamikoji St., Kyoto
Woodblock print
House of Level Twelve in Gion
Woodblock print
An Anko of Ooshima — 大島のアンコ
Woodblock print
Kaze no Kanata- The other side of the wind — 風のかなた
Woodblock print
Hirugao - ひるがお
Woodblock print
Swaying — ゆらめき
Woodblock print
Kazemoyou — 風もよう
Woodblock print
Untitled (kiyoshi-nakajima)
Woodblock print
Untitled (kiyoshi-nakajima)
Woodblock print
Untitled (kiyoshi-nakajima)
Woodblock print
Dressing Her Daughter — 娘の仕度
1897
Woodblock print
April — 其四 牡丹
1898
Woodblock print
Make-Up — 化粧
Not set
Woodblock print
Going Out — おでかけ
Not set
Woodblock print
Storyville IV (14/50)
Woodblock print
Untitled (terashima-shimei)
Woodblock print
Untitled (takehisa-yumeji)
Woodblock print
Yosooi of the Matsubaya, from the series Selections from Six Houses in Yoshiwara (Seiro rokkasen) (Matsubaya Yosooi)
c. 1801/02
Color woodblock print; oban
Dawn (Ake)
Woodblock print
Koharu
Woodblock print
Lady with Blue Kimono
Woodblock print
Love Letter - 恋文
Woodblock print
Le Nid Coree
1941
Woodblock print
La Mariée, Seoul, Corée
1948
Ichimaru
1933
Woodblock print, ink and color on paper
Various artists
1979
Woodblock print
Motomezuka
Woodblock print
A Hundred Shades of Ink of Edo: Harunobu's Bathtub (Edo zumi hyaku shoku: Harunobu no Furo)
Woodblock print
After a Bath
Woodblock print
Black Hair
Woodblock print
Younger Sister — 故小妹
Woodblock print
Look Back (3) Red
Woodblock print
Pedicure — 爪
1930
Woodblock print
Make-up (45/100)
1930
Woodblock print
Dream- LE
Woodblock print
TWO GIRLS, Friends, Couple (8)
Woodblock print
(long undergarment)
Woodblock print
Ine
Woodblock print
Woman and Blossoms
Woodblock print
March - Elegant - 閑雅
1958
Woodblock print
Dressing Her Hair (Kamiyui)
1931
Woodblock print
Rouge
1931
Woodblock print
Chapter 6 - Suetsumuhana
Woodblock print
Chapter 15 - Weeds
Woodblock print
Suetsuma Hana
Woodblock print
Scholten Japanese Art
Woodblock print
Waiting Time (Matsutoki)
Woodblock print
Volume 8 - Takehisa Yumeji - 竹久夢二
Woodblock print
Yuruki Nagare Ni
Woodblock print
Yugiri
Woodblock print
Lightning (Inazuma)
Woodblock print
Tears (Namida)
Woodblock print
Ebicha Hakama — 海老茶袴
Woodblock print
Gentle Breeze- LE
Woodblock print
Sorrow
Woodblock print
Takehisa Yumeji Painting Collection - 竹久夢二画集
Woodblock print
Design for the cover of the songlet Flying Island
c. 1930
Woodblock print, ink and color on paper
Related Subjects
Frequently Asked Questions
Bijin-ga — literally "pictures of beautiful people" — is one of the foundational genres of Japanese woodblock printmaking. The tradition dates to the earliest days of ukiyo-e, when artists like Hishikawa Moronobu and later Kitagawa Utamaro elevated portrayals of women from simple illustrations to sophisticated studies of beauty, fashion, and personality.
Hashiguchi Goyo, Torii Kotondo, and Takehisa Yumeji are among the artists most associated with bijin-ga in our collection. Browse the full list of artists who explored this subject above.
Hanga currently catalogues 1084 prints tagged with bijin-ga, spanning ukiyo-e, shin-hanga, and sōsaku-hanga traditions where applicable.