Untitled

Hokuei employed traditional ukiyo‑e woodblock techniques, using bold outlines in ink and layered pigments to achieve saturated colors. The folding album format allows the image to be viewed in sections, a common practice for portable, collectible prints of the period, and the flat, decorative background highlights the figure’s costume and facial expression.

The print was produced in the early 1830s, a prolific era for actor portraiture in Japan. It entered the Metropolitan Museum of Art’s collection through a 20th‑century acquisition of Japanese prints, where it has been catalogued as an example of Hokuei’s work in the kabuki genre.

During the Edo period, ukiyo‑e artists frequently created bijin and yakusha-e—images of beautiful women and actors—to satisfy popular demand for celebrity likenesses. Hokuei, a disciple of the renowned Sharaku, specialized in capturing the flamboyant gestures and stylized makeup that defined kabuki’s visual culture.