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
Departure of a Family
Woodblock print
Devastation
Woodblock print
Triptych: Hyaku-shaku Gaisho kôgeki no zu, Meiji period, dated 1895
Woodblock print
A Big Headache for Li Hongzhang
September 1894
Woodblock print (nishiki-e), ink and color on paper
Blockhead
December 1894
Woodblock print (nishiki-e), ink and color on paper
Flying Lost Plan
April 1904
Woodblock print (nishiki-e), ink and color on paper
Like a Storm
Woodblock print
Kirino Toshiaki
1877
Propaganda Print from the Russo-Japanese War
Woodblock print
Sugawara Michizane Expelled
Feburary 1884
Woodblock print (nishiki-e), ink and color on paper
Hi No Kami
1937
Woodblock print
Princess showing upper arm
1958
Woodblock print, ink on paper
Two Doll Figures
20th century
Woodblock print
Returning from a Bath — 湯がへり
Woodblock print
Nippon Jozokusen / Women's Customs in Japan
Woodblock print
Shinagawa Takumi
Woodblock print
Hara Shobō
Woodblock print
Untitled (hirezaki-eiho)
Woodblock print
Untitled (hirezaki-eiho)
Woodblock print
Man Looking Back
1957
Woodblock print, ink and color on paper
Mountaineer
1953
Woodblock print, ink and color on paper
Mountaineer With Compass
Woodblock print
Repose
Woodblock print
Skier (Sukiya)
1955
Color woodblock print; edition 14/50
Ziel- Pickel
Woodblock print
My Family
Woodblock print
Braving the Bitter Cold, Our Troops Set Up Camp at Yingkou
1895 (Meiji 28)
Woodblock print (nishiki-e) triptych; ink and color on paper
Captain Kani Ichita
January 1895
Woodblock print (nishiki-e), ink and color on paper
Attack at the Site of the Hundred-Foot Cliff
1895 (Meiji 28)
Woodblock print (nishiki-e); ink and color on paper
Gensami Yorimasa and Ino Hayata
Woodblock print
Major General Odera Fighting Fiercely at the Hundred Foot Cliff in Weihaiwei (Ikaiei hyakusekigaisho ni Odera shosho funsen su)
1895
Color woodblock print; oban triptych
Minamoto Tametomo, from the series The Unofficial History of Japan (Nihon gaishi no uchi)
1884 (Meiji 17)
Woodblock print (nishiki-e): ink, color, and metallic pigments on paper
Oda Nobunaga finds Saito Tosan in a House Laughing at him
Woodblock print
Tozai kyoka mondo (The Comic Catechism)
Woodblock print
Solitude - A Model from Akita
1947
Color woodblock print
Fugen Bosatsu
1960
Woodblock print
Korin
Shōwa period,
Woodblock print; ink and color on paper
The disciple Subodai / Shaka ju dai deshi (Ten Great Followers of Shaka)
1939 (designed)
Woodblock print
The Wife's Surprise (Tsumatachi no saku), from the series "The Tale of the Auklet (Uto Hanga-kan)"
1938
Woodblock print
After the Bath
Woodblock print
Kazue Yamagishi
Woodblock print
Seeking for Mother
Woodblock print
Pencil Studies of Mr. Fujikake Shizuya
Woodblock print
Jodo
Woodblock print
Untitled (hirezaki-eiho)
Woodblock print
Untitled (hirezaki-eiho)
Woodblock print
Totem Poles
Woodblock print
Untitled (hiyoshi-mamoru)
Woodblock print
Untitled (hiyoshi-mamoru)
Woodblock print
Untitled (hiyoshi-mamoru)
Woodblock print
Untitled (hiyoshi-mamoru)
Woodblock print
Skier
Woodblock print
Unknown- hiking
Woodblock print
Bungaro the Puppeteer
Woodblock print
Illustration of the Landing and Advance to Weihaiwei
1895 (Meiji 28)
Woodblock print (nishiki-e) triptych; ink and colors on paper
Flying Human Balloon
May 1904
Woodblock print (nishiki-e), ink and color on paper
Honorable Defeated General
October 1894
Woodblock print (nishiki-e), ink and color on paper
Fukuchi Gen'ichirō, from the series Instructive Models of Lofty Ambition (Kyōdō risshi motoi)
1885 (Meiji 18)
Woodblock print (nishiki-e); ink and color on paper
Long Live Japan! Victory song at Pingyang
Woodblock print
Urouro-bune (Aimless boats) / Nippon banzai hyakusen hyakusho (Hurrah for Japan! One Hundred Selections, One Hundred Laughs)
Woodblock print
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.