Figures Prints (1669)
Figure compositions are among the most diverse subjects in Japanese printmaking, encompassing everything from intimate domestic scenes to grand historical narratives. The tradition spans the full history of ukiyo-e, from Moronobu's pioneering single-sheet prints of the 1670s to contemporary figure studies that blend traditional techniques with modern sensibilities. In the ukiyo-e era, figure prints often depicted courtesans, actors, and townspeople of Edo's pleasure quarters, capturing the fashions, gestures, and social dynamics of urban life. The shin-hanga movement brought a more contemplative approach, with artists like Ito Shinsui creating elegant figure studies that emphasized mood and atmosphere over narrative action. Sosaku-hanga artists pursued more experimental figure work, from Onchi Koshiro's abstract portraits to Sekino Jun'ichiro's bold character studies. Figure prints in the Japanese tradition are notable for their attention to textile patterns, body language, and the suggestion of inner life through subtle compositional choices. Whether depicting a single standing figure or a complex multi-figure narrative, these works reveal the printmaker's skill in translating human presence into the woodblock medium.
Artists Known for Figures
Yaoya Oshichi and Koshô Kichisaburô (Yaoya Oshichi and Koshô Kichisaburô)
Woodblock print
Lieutenant General Yamaji …
January 1895
Woodblock print (nishiki-e), ink and color on paper
Tanaka Kanhachi
1869, 3rd lunar month
Woodblock print (nishiki-e), ink and color on paper
Fourth Act
1860, 4th lunar month
Woodblock print (nishiki-e), ink and color on paper
Streetwalkers Taking a Break in Yoshida-machi, Honjo
January 1881
Woodblock print (nishiki-e), ink and color on paper
Appearing Inquisitive, Behavior of a Maid of the Tenpō Era
April 1888
Woodblock print (nishiki-e), ink and color on paper
Fukami Jikyu (fukami jikyū)
1887
Komagine Hachibei
1868, 8th lunar month
Woodblock print (nishiki-e), ink and color on paper
Ōshima Tanzō
1866, 8th lunar month
Woodblock print (nishiki-e), ink and color on paper
Picture of the Fever of Taira no Kiyomori
August 1883
Woodblock print (nishiki-e), ink and color on paper
Shindō Kojirō Nobuyuki
1867, 8th lunar month
Woodblock print (nishiki-e), ink and color on paper
Table of Contents
October 1888
Woodblock print (nishiki-e), ink and color on paper
kawanabe-kyosai
Woodblock print
diptych print
Woodblock print
One Hundred Pictures by Kyōsai (Kyōsai hyakuzu)
1878
Kyosai gafu 狂斎画譜
Woodblock print
Parody of
Woodblock print
Girls (descriptive title)
Woodblock print
New Year’s Day
Woodblock print
Palanquin
Woodblock print
Senba Saburobe Mitsutada 千馬三郎兵衛光忠 / Gishi shijushichi zu 義士四十七図
Woodblock print
Picture of Second Lieutenant Takenouchi Tearing apart the Reconnaissance Map at the Time of Death
January 1895
Woodblock print (nishiki-e), ink and color on paper
Yoshida Chuzaemon Kanesuke 吉田忠左衛門兼亮 / Gishi shijushichi zu 義士四十七図
Woodblock print
Cavalryman Kimura Genmatsu …
March 1895
Woodblock print (nishiki-e), ink and color on paper
Last Stand of the Kusunoki Clan at Shijonawate — Kusunoki Shijonawate chusen nozu - Masatsura
Woodblock print
General Ōyama…
August 1895
Woodblock print (nishiki-e), ink and color on paper
Hotei
Woodblock print
Gekko's Sketches in Iroha-alphabet order (Vol. 2, fasc. 3)
1898
Woodblock printed book, ink on paper
Katsuta Shinzaemon Taketaka 勝田新左衛門武尭 / Gishi shijushichi zu 義士四十七図
Woodblock print
Kinugayoihime
Woodblock print
Kiku moyō enmei bukuro, no. 2
July 1891
Woodblock print (nishiki-e), ink and color on paper
Mimura Jiroemon Kanetsune 三村次郎右衛門包常 / Gishi shijushichi zu 義士四十七図
Woodblock print
Kurikara Kengorō
1867
Ninth Act
1860, 5th lunar month
Woodblock print (nishiki-e), ink and color on paper
Soga Jūrō Sukenari and Soga Gorō Tokimune
1872–73
Woodblock print (nishiki-e), ink and color on paper
Somehow I Want to Win
1878
Woodblock print (nishiki-e), ink and color on paper
The Sun Goddess Amaterasu Ōmikami
February 1882
Woodblock print (nishiki-e), ink and color on paper
Okuda Sadaemon Yukitaka, from
Woodblock print
A caricature of commodity prices, triptych, 1867
Woodblock print
No. 23, from
Woodblock print
Kagoshima shizoku Kumamoto-jo senso no zu
Woodblock print
April 10, Meiji 31: 30th. Anniversary Celebration of the Changing Name from Edo to Tokyo
Woodblock print
Empress Shoken in Western Dress and Bonnet
Woodblock print
Ame no Goro (4/40)
Woodblock print
Imayo Genji 今様げんじ / Miyashima senchu asobi 宮しま船中遊
Woodblock print
Koka era, from
Woodblock print
Male
Woodblock print
Two Mechanics of the Warship Matsushima …
August 1895
Woodblock print (nishiki-e), ink and color on paper
Hunter
Woodblock print
Captain Matsuzaki, Picture of Him Bravely Fighting at Anseong Ford
1895
Woodblock print (nishiki-e), ink and color on paper
At Fenghuangcheng, Picture of Generals and Their Men Engaged in a Hard Struggle
November 1894
Woodblock print (nishiki-e), ink and color on paper
Complete account of the chastisement at Kagoshima
1877
After A Bath — 湯上がり
Woodblock print
Prologue
1860, 4th lunar month
Woodblock print (nishiki-e), ink and color on paper
Appearing Warm, Behavior of an Urban Widow of the Kansei Era
March 1888
Woodblock print (nishiki-e), ink and color on paper
Ohara-me
Woodblock print
Man with knife on rooftop
second half 1860s
Preparatory drawing for a print, ink and color on paper
Painful (Itaso), from the series "Thirty-two Aspects of Women (Fuzoku sanjuniso)"
1888
Color woodblock print; oban
Postal News
1875
Woodblock print
The Actors Ichimura Uzaemon XIII and Kawarazaki Gonjūrō I Announcing Their Return to the Stage after Recovering from Measles
1862
Related Subjects
Frequently Asked Questions
Figure compositions are among the most diverse subjects in Japanese printmaking, encompassing everything from intimate domestic scenes to grand historical narratives. The tradition spans the full history of ukiyo-e, from Moronobu's pioneering single-sheet prints of the 1670s to contemporary figure studies that blend traditional techniques with modern sensibilities.
Tsukioka Yoshitoshi, Ogata Gekko, and Utagawa Kuniyoshi are among the artists most associated with figures in our collection. Browse the full list of artists who explored this subject above.
Hanga currently catalogues 1669 prints tagged with figures, spanning ukiyo-e, shin-hanga, and sōsaku-hanga traditions where applicable.