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
Unknown, Woman 2
Woodblock print
Gazing Woman
Woodblock print
Naoko
Woodblock print
Resting, Paris, Shôwa period, dated 1960
Woodblock print
Untitled (hirezaki-eiho)
Woodblock print
Untitled (hirezaki-eiho)
Woodblock print
Climbing Rope (Zairu), Shôwa period, dated 1957
Woodblock print
Japanese Alps (Nihon Arupusu)
Woodblock print
Ikeda Shuzo (Ikeda Shuzo)
Woodblock print
Space Voice — うつろな声
Woodblock print
Woman wearing necklace
1955
Color woodblock print; edition 1/100
Untitled (hodo-nishimura)
Woodblock print
Kusa no mitori
Woodblock print
Landing and Advance to Weihaiwei (Ikaiei joriku shingun no zu)
1895
Color woodblock print; oban triptych
Cartoon (Tooth Pulling)
Woodblock print
Four comical faces
1882
Woodblock print (nishiki-e), ink and color on paper
Captain Asakawa, Second Class Cavalryman Kimura Genmatsu
January 1895
Woodblock print (nishiki-e), ink and color on paper
Hell is Booming
November 1894
Woodblock print (nishiki-e), ink and color on paper
Shinohara Kunimoto
1877
Surrender Prologue in a Qing Kyōgen Play
March 1895
Woodblock print (nishiki-e), ink and color on paper
Clay Images
1950
Color woodblock print
Ernst Hacker (d, ?)
Woodblock print
Untitled (asada-benji)
Woodblock print
Untitled (hirezaki-eiho)
Woodblock print
Untitled (hirezaki-eiho)
Woodblock print
Untitled (hirezaki-eiho)
Woodblock print
Ningen o horu
Woodblock print
30, Oda Nobunaga
December 1885
Woodblock print (nishiki-e), ink and color on paper
Colonel Kumamoto Masaji, Regimental Commander of the Imperial Guard Artillery
May 1904?
Woodblock print (nishiki-e), ink and color on paper
Cavalry Sergeant Kawasaki Iseo
February 1895
Woodblock print (nishiki-e), ink and color on paper
The Fall of Fenghuangcheng, later called Our Elite Forces Capturing the Pescadores Islands in Taiwan
1894 (Meiji 27)
Woodblock print (nishiki-e) triptych; ink and color on paper
Knitting
Woodblock print
A hood — Okoso-Zukin
Woodblock print
Tenderness (A)
Woodblock print
Dainichi Nyorai
1937
Woodblock print
"Prints by Munakata: Treasured Things" (Munakata hanga aizen hin)
20th century
Total Abandon (Mukotai no saku), from a series iIllustrating Tanizaki Junichiro's "The Key (Kagi)"
1956 (printed 1958)
Woodblock print
Shaka Nyorai
1937
Woodblock print
Shishikutsu (In the Cave)
1953
Woodblock print
Untitled (asada-benji)
Woodblock print
Tired look
Woodblock print
Untitled (hirezaki-eiho)
Woodblock print
Untitled (hiyoshi-mamoru)
Woodblock print
Ishi-Something Mountaion
Woodblock print
Mountaineer Number 3
Woodblock print
Parting
Shōwa period, dated 1956
Woodblock print; ink and color on paper with signature reading "U. AZECHI"
Red Hat
1963
Color woodblock print
Parting, Shôwa period, dated 1956
Woodblock print
Unknown- sunbaking
Woodblock print
Untitled (takashi-henmi)
Woodblock print
Eizo and Matsuomaru
1953
Color woodblock print
Women’s Activities of the Tokugawa Era
Woodblock print
Illustration Number One
October 1894
Woodblock print (nishiki-e), ink and color on paper
Picture of Negotiations with the Peace Envoy Li Hongzhang
March 1895?
Woodblock print (nishiki-e), ink and color on paper
Picture of Army General Nozu Commanding the Attack on Haicheng
May 1896
Woodblock print (nishiki-e), ink and color on paper
Ono no Tōfū
May 1886
Woodblock print (nishiki-e), ink and color on paper
Strange Chinese Soldiers
September 1894
Woodblock print (nishiki-e), ink and color on paper
Mother Love
Woodblock print
Solitude, Kyoto
1955
Color woodblock print; edition 70/150
Shaka no Saku
1957
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.