KUNISADA Japanese Woodblock Print BEAUTY LIGHTING A LAMP 1818

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KUNISADA Japanese Woodblock Print BEAUTY LIGHTING A LAMP 1818 UTAGAWA KUNISADA A Beauty Lighting a Lamp at Evening TimeNumber 1 from the series "Contemporary Manners and the Passing of Time" Date: original 1818, publisher: Iseya Rihei; this mid-20th century published by Adachi Size: oban , 10.6" x 16" Condition: VG, minor flaws, very good overall Impression: VG, nice impression with strong key lines and excellent registration Color: VG, strong fresh color An Edo-era beauty bends to light the lamp in her boudoir. Scattered about on the floor are the detritus of the afternoon's reverie. ABOUT KUNISADA At the end of the Edo Period (1600 – 1867), Hiroshige, Kuniyoshi and Kunisada were the three best representatives of the Japanese color woodcut in Edo (capital city of Japan, now Tokyo). However, among European and American collectors of Japanese prints, beginning in the late 19th and early 20th century, all three of these artists were actually regarded as rather inferior to the greats of classical ukiyo-e, and therefore as having contributed considerably to the downfall of their art. For this reason, some referred to their works as “decadent”. Beginning in the 1930’s and 1970’s, respectively, the works of Hiroshige and Kuniyoshi were submitted to a re-evaluation, and these two are now counted among the masters of their art. Thus, from Kunisada alone was withheld, for a long time, the acknowledgment which is due to him. With a few exceptions, such as actor portraits and portraits of beautiful women (bijinga) , at the beginning of his career, and some series of large-size actor head-portraits near the end, it was thought that he had produced only inferior works. It was not until the early 1990’s, with the appearance of Jan van Doesburg’s overview of the artistic development of Kunisada, and Sebastian Izzard’s extensive study of his work, that this picture began to change, with Kunisada more clearly revealed as one of the “giants” of the Japanese print that he was. VISIT OUR EBAY STORE FOR MORE WOODBLOCK PRINTS AND BOOKS ABOUT WOODBLOCK ARTISTS Please feel free to email us through the eBay message system with any questions. WE PREFER PAYPAL, but in the event that you do not have a Paypal account we will accept payment through the mail. Please contact us through eBay for the mailing address. Items purchased will be shipped only to the address on the eBay account. State of New York residents are required to pay 7.375% sales tax. International If payment has not been received within 10 days of the end of the purchase, a Non-Paying Bidder report will be filed with eBay unless other arrangements have been made with the seller. SHIPPING - Domestic shipping costs are listed on the item's eBay page. Domestic U.S. buyers may combine prints (sorry NOT BOOKS or books with prints) purchased within a 7-day period. Additional prints shipped domestically are $2.00 each. International shipping costs are listed on the item's eBay page, and additional prints shipped internationally are $4.00 each. When combining prints into one shipment the highest shipping rate applies plus any additional item fees as listed on the auction page. This includes items listed as free shipping when combined with items requiring postage. Seller is not responsible for any customs fees or VAT that may be incurred by international buyers. RETURNS - We try to present each item accurately. If you have a question, please contact us through the eBay message system for clarification prior to bidding. If you are unhappy with your print for any reason, you may return it within 14 days of the date you received it for a full refund less shipping/handling charges. FEEDBACK - Once you have left your feedback, and we are sure you are satisfied with your item, our positive feedback response is automatically left on your eBay feedback account. Your positive feedback triggers our automated positive response. We will be away through June 23. All items purchased from now until then will be shipped on Ju... read more

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