Posted by Guy Pepermans (91.176.18.234) on June 04, 2010 at 11:53:57:
In Reply to: Utamaro I or II? posted by Rick Marksbury on June 03, 2010 at 16:52:37:
This is indeed an issue that always had lead to controversy.
According to the scholars Asano and Clark, Utamaro I designed just one ‘uki-e’ Omi hakkei series in the early 1790s (The Passionate Art of Kitagawa Utamaro, 1995).
This should imply that all the other ‘uki-e’ series signed Utamaro were designed by Utamaro II after 1806.
According to this Japanese website your print is indeed by Utamaro II (see description print nr 9 here: http://www.mahoroba.ne.jp/~museum/mokuroku.html) probably designed around the 1810s.
I don’t know if Asano & Clark’s point of view is still undisputed at the present time. I must say that I was always have been intrigued by the fact that female figures on certain ‘uki-e’ signed Utamaro (not so on your print) are depicted in an obvious early 1790s style with dito hair dresses.
For the official record - title is “Edo ukie Shin Yoshiwara Nakano-cho yukei no zu” (Perspective pictures from Edo: evening view of Nakano street in the New Yoshiwara), published by Yamaguchiya Tobei.
Guy
BTW: very nice print, the same subject was rendered earlier in an almost identical way by Utagawa Toyoharu – a print bearing also the same subject title.