Scheduled Exhibition Ukiyo-e Art of Beautiful Women at the End of the Shogunate and in the Meiji Period
Exhibit Period
July 1 (Thursday) – August 1 (Sunday), 2004
Exhibit Times
9:30 a.m. - 5:00 p.m.
(last admissions at 4:30 p.m.)
Museum closed
Mondays, and the day following a holiday (except when this falls on a Saturday or Sunday)
Admission Fee
Adults: 500yen High School, College Students: 300yen Elementary, Junior High School Students: 100yen (Discounts are available for groups of 20 or more, the handicapped and the elderly)
Overview
As one of the major subjects of ukiyo-e art, the bijin-ga (figure painting or print of a beautiful woman) has been drawn from various perspectives by ukiyo-e artists representing each era. The objects of the bijin-ga have been prostitutes, geisha, popular girls at the teahouses, etc.—women who’ve been the talk of the town in their respective times. However, at the end of the shogunate and continuing into the Meiji Period hairstyles and clothing became important subjects of interest, and bijin-ga began serving the same role as the fashion magazines and entertainment news sources of today.
On this occasion, we look at women’s fashions during the turbulent period of transition from the Edo to the Meiji Era, introducing the works of ukiyo-e artists Utagawa Hiroshige, Utagawa Toyokuni III, Yoshu Chikanobu, Utagawa Yoshitoshi and others.
Museum Talk
Presented by one of our curators
Saturday, July 3, 2004; Saturday, July 17, 2004;
Saturday, July 24, 2004; all talks begin at 1:30 p.m.
Lecture
“Ukiyo-e figures Paintings and Prints”
Hashimoto Kenichiro, director, International Ukiyo-e Society
Saturday, July 10, 2004; from 1:30 p.m. – 3:00 p.m.