Japanese Prints

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2 The Mysterious Sharaku Although Toshusai Sharaku was a master of the Japanese woodcut art form, his true identity represents one of the great mysteries of the art world. Little is known about him, besides his Ukiyo-e, floating world prints. Even more improbably, Sharaku’s active career as a woodblock artist lasted a mere ten months, from the middle of 1794 to early 1795. He emerged out of nowhere, already with his own style, signalling a complete and immediate departure from all other Japanese artists of the period. He then disappeared with equal abruptness. This exceptional and very rare woodblock print by Sharaku depicts the Kabuki actor Matsumoto Yonezaburo in the role of Keisei Shiratama, one of two sisters whose father is murdered and becomes a courtesan in order to obtain revenge on the assassin. The serious expression in her eyes reveals that she is lost in deep contemplation as she smokes a pipe. This highly exaggerated portrait of the kabuki actor was executed in the great Sharaku’s characteristic style. The print bears the artist signature, Toshusai Sharaku Ga, and publisher seal on the top right of the image. As is typical of Sharaku, he used a ground known as unmo, or mica, which is a mineral contained in large amounts in granite. He sprinkled this on the paper to create an unusual silver-black or purple sheen in the background. One theory is that Sharaku was not an individual, but a collective launched by a group of artists to help a woodblock print-house that had aided them. The name Sharaku is taken from sharakusai, “nonsense,” and may be an inside joke by the artists, who knew that there was no individual of that name. In his short career Sharaku went through four distinct stylistic changes, lending credence to the claim that he was a collective rather than an individual. At this time it was quite common for five to ten artisans to work together on woodblock prints. It has been suggested that the great printmaker, Katsushika Hokusai, author of the iconic print The Great Wave of Kanagawa is the man behind Sharaku. Between 1792 and 1796, the time when Sharaku’s work starts to appear, Hokusai disappeared from the art world. However, there is little evidence to support this theory, other than explaining Hokusai’s absence from the art scene. The name of Jurōbei Saitō, a samurai turned Noh actor, has also been put forward however there is now some doubt around this theory. The mystery surrounding this artist, the rarity of his prints and his unusual technique and elegant style has helped to secure his place in Japanese art history as one of the most prominent and important artists.
Henry Sotheran Limited 3 1. Kabuki Actor Matsumoto Yonezaburo Playing the Role of Keisei Shiratama. Sharaku (active 1794-1795). Original woodblock print, Japan, 1794-1795. 370 x 248mm. £69,000
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Japanese Prints

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