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
Masks #4
1958
Woodblock print, ink on paper
Matsumoto Koshiro VIII as Matsuomaru
Not set
Woodblock print
MODORIBASHI
Woodblock print
Döjöji
Woodblock print
Three Masks (Kamen 3)
1957
Color woodblock print
Collection of Shunsen Portraits: Sawamura Gennosuke IV as Nikki Danjo (Shunsen Nigao-e Shu: Sawamura Gennosuke IV)
Woodblock print
Kataoka Nizaemon XI as Kumagai
十一代目片岡仁左衛門の熊谷
1926
Color woodblock print
Masamitsu Ohta (1892?-1975) - see Ohta, Masamitsu
Not set
Woodblock print
Kitamura Rokuro as Otsuta in Fukeizu
Not set
Woodblock print
Matsumoto Koshiro VII as Kenkei in Kanjincho
1954
Woodblock print
Yanone II (ed. 4/20)
Woodblock print
Ichimura Uzaemon XV as Iriya Naozamurai
十五代目市村羽左衛門の入谷直侍
1925
Color woodblock print
Two Dancers
Woodblock print
Breaking News - Ako Roshi Vendetta Accomplished
Woodblock print
Mask # 4
Woodblock print
Ota Masamitsu
1955
Woodblock print
TotalCount
1949
Woodblock print
Tsukioka Kogyo
Woodblock print
Collection of Shunsen Portraits: Kataoka Nizaoemon XI as Kyudanme Kakogawa Honzo (Shunsen Nigao-e Shu: Kataoka Nizaoemon XI)
Woodblock print
Kotondo
Circa 1954
Woodblock print
Kanjincho
1935
Painting
Ohta Masamitsu (Ota)
1954
Woodblock print
Queen's Coffin
Woodblock print
The Puppet Manipulator Bungoro in the Greenroom
Woodblock print
Yoshimura Ijūrō VI’s Memorable Stage Concerts
1941
Woodblock print, ink and color on paper
Bungorô on Stage
1953
Woodblock print
Shuzenji Monogatari
Circa 1954
Woodblock print
Musume Dojoji
Not set
Woodblock print
Memorial Portraits of Iwai Hanshirō VI and Bandō Mitsugorō III
after 1836
Woodblock print (nishiki-e), ink and color on paper
Kuruwa Sayaate
Circa 1954
Woodblock print
(Michiyuki) nekoyanagi sakari no tsukikage
Woodblock print
(Kagamiyama) zori-hachi no dan
Woodblock print
Takiyasha-hime
1867
Second Act
1860, 4th lunar month
Woodblock print (nishiki-e), ink and color on paper
Untitled (Part of a Triptych: A Woman being Shot by Arrows)
1889
Woodblock print
Actors Ōtani Tomoemon V as Sadato and Bandō Matsujirō as his daughter Okimi
1865, 8th lunar month
Woodblock print (nishiki-e), ink and color on paper
Fifth Act
1860, 4th lunar month
Woodblock print (nishiki-e), ink and color on paper
Sixth Act
1860, 4th lunar month
Woodblock print (nishiki-e), ink and color on paper
Eighth Act
1860, 5th lunar month
Woodblock print (nishiki-e), ink and color on paper
Third Act
1860, 4th lunar month
Woodblock print (nishiki-e), ink and color on paper
Tanaka Kanhachi
1869, 3rd lunar month
Woodblock print (nishiki-e), ink and color on paper
Chushingura
Woodblock print
The Actors Ichimura Uzaemon XIII and Kawarazaki Gonjūrō I Announcing Their Return to the Stage after Recovering from Measles
1862
Sarugaku-Kyögen Play (descriptive title)
Woodblock print
Fourth Act
1860, 4th lunar month
Woodblock print (nishiki-e), ink and color on paper
Osome
1864, 7th lunar month
Woodblock print (nishiki-e), ink and color on paper
Prologue
1860, 4th lunar month
Woodblock print (nishiki-e), ink and color on paper
Ninth Act
1860, 5th lunar month
Woodblock print (nishiki-e), ink and color on paper
Surrender Prologue in a Qing Kyōgen Play
March 1895
Woodblock print (nishiki-e), ink and color on paper
Manipulating Marionettes
1956
Color woodblock print
Bungaro the Puppeteer
Woodblock print
Eizo and Matsuomaru
1953
Color woodblock print
Jodo
Woodblock print
Untitled (natori-shunsen)
Woodblock print
Eizô and Matsuomaru
1953
Woodblock print
Puppet Show
1960
Woodblock print
Kumadori III
1966
Woodblock print, ink and color on paper
The Tayu (High-ranking Courtesan)
Woodblock print on ganpi paper with mica
Bando Tamasaburo V as Ama Matsukaze
Woodblock print on ganpi paper with mica
Ichikawa Danshiro IV as Akushichibyoe Kagekiyo
Woodblock print on ganpi paper with mica
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.