Item from the Mokuhankan Flea Market

Nakayama Tomisaburo

Size: 38.5cm by 26.0cm (15.16 in by 10.24 in) | Enlargement | Shipping Code: [L] ?

Designer: Toshusai Sharaku

Era: Pre-war | Currency: $ / £ / €

Price: ¥ 9,000$ 70.00£ 62.25€ 72.00 [Item has been sold]

Description: This print is included in a set of 50 prints called "Ukiyo Ekagami," a collection of various artists and genres, which was probably a reproduction in the pre-war period.

The print is depicting the portrait of Nakayama Tomisaburo a male kabuki actor who played female roles. He is wearing a woman hairstyle wig decorated with multiple combs and a grey and pink kimono.

Actor prints were used to promote the actors at the time, they often show them in a frozen position or "mie", a dramatic pose often accompanied by exaggerated facial expressions, essential to kabuki theater tradition.

Here, the face and the bust are taking up all the space of the print (bust view), this allows us to observe the great facial expression: he is scowling while pressing his lips, and one hand is subtly touching the neck of his kimono with two fingers to reinforce the "mie" in order to show his emotions at their peak.

There are a few marks at the margins of this print.

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