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Picture of Watonai's Visit to the Palace, from the series Perspective Pictures of Foreign Lands

Picture of Watonai's Visit to the Palace, from the series Perspective Pictures of Foreign Lands

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Utagawa Toyoharu

Watonai, whose real name was Tei Seiko, was born to a Japanese mother and a Chinese father who had taken refuge in Japan. Watonai became famous for his bravery and heroics traveling to China to battle the Manchu invaders during the Ming dynasty (1368–1644). Among his exploits is the capture a ferocious tiger being hunted by Manchu warriors. In this scene from the kabuki adaptation of his heroic tale, Watonai rides the subdued tiger as he approaches Lion Castle, home to his half-sister and the Chinese General Kanki. Toyoharu has rendered the castle using European architectural models, complete with a moat likely derived from imported etchings. Toyoharu’s handling of linear perspective appears awkward in this design, with inconsistent multiple vanishing points. The overall visual effect of the uneven composition creates a whimsical landscape of a mythical, distant land.
Artist
Utagawa Toyoharu
(Japanese, 1735 - 1814)
Title
Picture of Watonai's Visit to the Palace, from the series Perspective Pictures of Foreign Lands
Date
1770-1780
Medium
Color woodcut
Dimensions
239 x 361 mm Overall
Credit
Bequest of John H. Van Vleck
Accession No.
1980.3098
Classification
Prints
Geography
Japan

Related

By 1925, purchased in Japan by Frank Lloyd Wright; ca. 1926, acquired by The Bank of Wisconsin; 1928, sold to Edward Burr Van Vleck (Madison, WI); 1943, passed through inheritance to Edward’s son, John H. Van Vleck (Madison, WI); 9 January 1980, bequeathed by John H. Van Vleck to the Elvehjem Museum of Art [now called Chazen Museum of Art]

  • Mueller, Laura. "Competition and Collaboration: Japanese Prints of the Utagawa School." Leiden, The Netherlands: Hotei Publishing, 2007. p. 66, no. 14
  • Suzuki, Keiko. "Making of Tojin: Construction of the Other in Early Modern Japan." Asian Folklore Studies. Nanzan University (2007).
  • Helmstetter, Deidre. "An Early Bridge: Utagawa Toyoharu and His Integrated Designs." Elvehjem Museum of Art Bulletin, 1995-1997. Elvehjem Museum of Art (1997): 57-70. pp. 57-70
  • Elvehjem Museum of Art. "Bulletin/Biennial Report 1995-1997." Madison: Elvehjem Museum of Art, 1998. p. 61
  • Marks, Andreas. "Japanese Woodblock Prints (1680-1938)." Cologne: TASCHEN, 2019. pp. 146-147, 620, no. 36
  • Elvehjem Museum of Art. "The Edward Burr Van Vleck Collection of Japanese Prints." Madison: Elvehjem Museum of Art, 1990. p. 320

  • Utagawa: Masters of the Japanese Print, 1770-1900 : Chazen Museum of Art, 3/21/2008–6/15/2008
  • Competition and Collaboration: Japanese Prints of the Utagawa School: Chazen Museum of Art, 11/3/2007–1/6/2008
  • Van Vleck Collection of Japanese Prints, The: Elvehjem Museum of Art, 10/7/1990–11/25/1990

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