Kabuki Prints (357)
Kabuki theater prints (yakusha-e) are among the earliest and most commercially important genres of ukiyo-e, documenting the stars, roles, and dramatic moments of Japan's premier theatrical tradition. From the late seventeenth century onward, prints depicting kabuki actors were as popular as modern entertainment magazines, feeding public fascination with the theater's celebrity culture. Torii Kiyonobu and the Torii school established the earliest conventions for actor prints, emphasizing dramatic poses (mie) and bold patterned costumes. The genre reached its artistic peak with Sharaku's psychologically penetrating bust portraits of 1794-95, which broke with flattering convention to capture the intensity and effort of stage performance. Though commercially unsuccessful in his time, Sharaku's brief output is now considered among the most important works in the print tradition. The nineteenth century saw enormous production of actor prints by artists including Kunisada, Kunichika, and Kuniyoshi, who documented the kabuki repertoire with encyclopedic thoroughness. These prints preserve detailed records of costumes, makeup (kumadori), and staging that are invaluable to theater historians. The genre declined with the advent of photography but experienced periodic revivals, including shin-hanga actor prints by Natori Shunsen and the bold theatrical compositions of modern sosaku-hanga artists.
Artists Known for Kabuki
Portrait of Nakamura Kichiemon
1947
Woodblock print, ink and color on paper
The Outdoor Theater at Mount Fuji
1998
Woodblock print, ink and color on paper
Actor Bandō Shinsui as Takechi Mitsuhide
1865, 6th lunar month
Woodblock print (nishiki-e), ink and color on paper
Actor Ichikawa Kodanji IV as Torii Matasuke
1860, 3rd lunar month
Woodblock print (nishiki-e), ink and color on paper
Actor Nakamura Shikan IV
1862, 5th lunar month
Woodblock print (nishiki-e), ink and color on paper
Actor Sawamura Tosshō II as Hangan Takasada
1862, 3rd lunar month
Woodblock print (nishiki-e), ink and color on paper
Ichikawa Danjūrō IX as Musashibō Benkei in The Subscription List (Kanjinchō)
Meiji period, datable to 1890
Center panel from a woodblock print (nishiki-e) triptych; ink, color, gauffrage, and metallic pigment on paper
Light Snowfall: Actor Ichikawa Sadanji I as Obō Kichisa
c. 1876
Woodblock print (nishiki-e), ink and color on paper
The Actor Ichikawa Sadanji as Akechi Samenosuke, from the series "Seven Brilliant Heroes (Komei shichi yosei)"
1876
Color woodblock print; oban
The Actor Kawarazaki Gonjuro I, from the series "Reminiscences of Elegant Actors (Fuga wazaogi shinobu)"
1862
Color woodblock print; oban
Famous Views of the Tokaido: Enjoying a Midday Noh Performance
Woodblock print
Kabuki play “Seki no to”
Woodblock print
Nakamura Kansuke Masatoki 中村勘助正辰 / Gishi shijushichi zu 義士四十七図
Woodblock print
Theatre
Woodblock print
Opening Ceremony at the Hisamatsuza Theater
Woodblock print
Bunraku Puppets
Woodblock print
Hit Play at the Shin-Tomiza: Actors Nakamura Ganjirô as Chûbei and Nakamura Fukusuke as Umegawa
Woodblock print
A Great Mirror of the Actors of the Heisei Period: Bando Tamasaburo as the Heron Maiden (Heisei yakusha o-kagami: Tamasaburo - Sagi musume)
Woodblock print
Bando Mitsugoro in the Role of an Evil Aristocrat (Kugeaku)
Woodblock print
Ichikawa Danjuro XII (1946-2013) in Shibaraku (Danjuro no Shibaraku)
Woodblock print
Large-head Kabuki Portraits: Ichikawa Danshiro as Benkei (Kabuki okubi-e: Goh'iki Kanjinchou- Danshiro Benkei)
Woodblock print
Large-head Kabuki Portraits: Ichikawa Ennosuke as Nikki Danjo (Kabuki okubi-e: Ennosuke - Nikki Danjo)
Woodblock print
Large-head Kabuki Portraits: Nakamura Ganjiro in the Love Suicides at Sonezaki (Kabuki okubi-e: Ganjiro- Sonezaki Shinju)
Woodblock print
Large-head Kabuki Portraits: Nakamura Jakuemon as the Wisteria Maiden (Kabuki okubi-e: Nakuamura Jakuemon- Fuji Musume)
Woodblock print
An Actor of Woman's Roles
1791
Color woodblock print; hosoban
Ichikawa Danjuro VI
c. 1792/93
Color woodblock print
The Actor Ichikawa Komazo as a Woman with Dishevelled Hair
c. 1791
Color woodblock print; hosoban
Actors Onoe Kikugorō III as Yorimasa (R) and Iwai Kumesaburō II as the Nue Monster (L)
first half 1830s
Woodblock print (surimono), ink and color on paper
Ichikawa Kadanji IV as the ghost of Sakura Sogoro
Woodblock print
Act Five from the series Treasury of Loyal Retainers (Chûshingura: Go danme), Late Edo period, circa 1801-1802
Woodblock print
Kumadori II
1966
Woodblock print, ink and color on paper
#51 Scene from Act IV
c. 1935
Woodblock print
Kagami-Jishi
Not set
Woodblock print
Onnagata Looking to Lower Right, Taishô period, circa 1920-1922
Woodblock print
An00380898 001 L
Woodblock print
Unpei - Plate No 125
Not set
Woodblock print
TotalCount
1987
Woodblock print
Sawamura Sojiro as Narihira Reizo
Woodblock print
Parody of the play "Musume Dojoji"
c. 1801/05
Color woodblock print; kokonotsugiri-ban, surimono
Japanese Art Open Database
Not set
Woodblock print
Dai ju-damme (Act 10) / Shinpan Ukie Chushingura
Woodblock print
#20. Surawaka-cho
Woodblock print
Drawing for Eizo and Matsuomaru
1947
Watercolor on paper
Yotsuya kaidan
June 1983
Woodblock print
Kataoka Nizaemon XI in the role of Kakiemon
Woodblock print
Koman
Woodblock print
Onnagata in Black Looking to Lower Left, Taishô period, circa 1920-1922
Woodblock print
Scene from Act 11
c.1935
Woodblock print
#88 Scene from Act VII
c. 1935
Woodblock print
Sukeroku
Woodblock print
Kataoka Gado as Miyuki in 'Shoutsushi asagao nikki'
Woodblock print
Finished drawing for an early act
c. 1935
Drawing
Fujimusume
Woodblock print
Kon Chüsuke
1904
Woodblock print
Kagamijishi — 鏡獅子
Woodblock print
Heroine Umekawa in MEIDO NO HIYAKU
Woodblock print
Shibaraku
Woodblock print
Kagamiyama Woman — 鏡山のはつ女
Woodblock print
Umegawa (Umegawa from the play Meido no hikyaku)
1923
Color woodblock print
Kataoka Gado
Woodblock print
Related Subjects
Frequently Asked Questions
Kabuki theater prints (yakusha-e) are among the earliest and most commercially important genres of ukiyo-e, documenting the stars, roles, and dramatic moments of Japan's premier theatrical tradition. From the late seventeenth century onward, prints depicting kabuki actors were as popular as modern entertainment magazines, feeding public fascination with the theater's celebrity culture.
Tsuruya Kokei, Tsukioka Gyokusei, and Ota Masamitsu are among the artists most associated with kabuki in our collection. Browse the full list of artists who explored this subject above.
Hanga currently catalogues 357 prints tagged with kabuki, spanning ukiyo-e, shin-hanga, and sōsaku-hanga traditions where applicable.