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
A Girl's Growth to Adulthood
2010
Oil and gold on wooden panel
NY Portrait 2
2015
Ink and color on paper
NY Portrait 5
2015
Washi Paper with Sumi Ink
Woman Combing Her Hair
1982
Woodblock
Woman with a Red Tray
1920
N/A
Dark Mirror
1967
Woodblock Print
: Surface is the Between – Between Vertical and the Horizon – Paper Between a Stone and Brook
1983
Lithograph on Fabriano paper, screen print, printed both sides with Chine-collé
Elderly person
Watercolor on paper
Moga Reclining (Nude)
Oil on canvas
Self-portrait with Tecpatl
2020
Etching and Aquating
Anémonés et fleurs de champs dans un verre a facettes / Bouquet sur fond de dentelle
1945
Etching and aquatint
Figure
1964
Lithograph on paper
To The Person I'll Be Tomorrow
2016
Woodblock
Girl (D)
1967
Woodblock Print
Morning Bath
1989
Aquatint
Lady
2021
Woodblock print on Japanese paper
Beauty（波枕）
1960
Original Woodcut print
Summer Geisha
1934
Woodblock Print
BIJING NOW 01
2016
Digital Dyeing on Silk
BIJING NOW 03
2016
Digital Dyeing on Silk
BIJING NOW 04
2016
Digital Dyeing on Silk
BIJING NOW DRAWING 05
2016
Acrylic ink on paper
Figure Holding A Drum Japanese Cubist Woodblock Print
20
Woodblock print
People of Fire Mountain
1980
Color woodcut
Do You Hear the People Sing
2025
Woodblock print
Maiko (Apprentice Geisha)
1924
Woodblock Print
Woman After Bath
1920
Woodblock Print
american sensuality u.s.a. flag usa speedo swimming suit maga swim briefs figure woodcut woodblock mokuhanga swimmer contemporary visual art artist charles spitzack print fine arts printmaking printmaker
Sample work 03 — figure / portrait (cedar woodblock series)
Woodblock print on washi (cedar boards)
Dancing Figure (Eshima)- LE
Woodblock print
Dancing Figure (Kamuro) 114/300
Woodblock print
Dancing figure- KAMURO- LE
Woodblock print
Dancing figure- KAMURO- oban
Woodblock print
Dancing Figure (Sagimusume) - 鷲娘
Woodblock print
Dancing Figure- Taki- LE
Woodblock print
Spring Figure — 春すがた
Woodblock print
![[Russian soldiers frightened by toy figures of Japanese soldiers hanging by strings] by Kobayashi Kiyochika](https://data.ukiyo-e.org/loc/images/01008v.jpg)
[Russian soldiers frightened by toy figures of Japanese soldiers hanging by strings]
Woodblock print
Figure 6
Woodblock print
Naoko 1 (Untitled)
Lithograph (lithographic-crayon-blackened stone with razor-blade figure extraction)
Naoko 2 (Untitled)
Lithograph (lithographic-crayon-blackened stone with razor-blade figure extraction)
Sample intaglio (winged figure / animal series)
Etching, mezzotint, hand-dyeing on gampi paper
Lu Chin Shen smashing the guardian figure at the Temple on the five-crested mountain in a drunken rage
Mokuhanga (Japanese woodblock)
Five figures of modern beauties
Mokuhanga (Japanese woodblock)
Flowers and Figures No. 6
Mokuhanga (Japanese woodblock)
Flowers and Figures No. 6
Mokuhanga (Japanese woodblock)
The Actor Onoe Kikugoro V as the Priest Sogen (Yuki: Iwakura Sogen Onoe Baiko), from the series "Snow, Moon, and Flowers (Setsugekka no uchi)"
1890
Color woodblock prints; oban triptych
Yūgiri and Izaemon, from the series Tailored Journeys of Couple's Crests (Hiyoku mon michiyuki shitate)
early 19th century
Woodblock print (nishiki-e); ink and color on paper
Kayoi, from the series Seven Beautiful Women (Fūryū nana komachi)
Late Edo period, late 18th to early 19th century
Ukiyo-e woodblock print in "ōban" format; ink and color on paper, with printed signature reading "Utamaro hitsu"
The Puppeteer Kiritake Monjuro with the Puppet Jihei (Right) and Other Puppeteers with Osui, the daughter of Jihei (Center) and Koharu (Left)
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.