An Imposter Murasaki and Rustic Genji (Nise Murasaki inaka Genji)

An Imposter Murasaki and Rustic Genji (Nise Murasaki inaka Genji)

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Tsukioka Yoshitoshi

In this triptych Yoshitoshi pays homage to Utagawa Kunisada, who illustrated Ryutei Tanehiko’s successful serial novel Imposter Murasaki, Rustic Genji, begun in 1829. This scene from the fifth volume tells the story of the protagonist Mitsuuji and his forbidden lover Tasogare, who escape to spend a night at a dilapidated temple. A wicked demon appears before the couple and threatens to kill them. They discover that the demon is Tasogare’s mother, and both daughter and mother commit suicide out of shame and remorse. Yoshitoshi’s version is printed with utmost skill and deluxe techniques like blind embossing, textile printing, and glossy black to replicate the appearance of lacquer or silk. An elaborate tableau from Buddhist hell and paradise is painted on the temple’s sliding doors.
Artist
Tsukioka Yoshitoshi
(Japanese, 1839 - 1892)
Title
An Imposter Murasaki and Rustic Genji (Nise Murasaki inaka Genji)
Date
May 21, 1884
Medium
Color woodcut
Dimensions
362 x 735 mm Image
Credit
John H. Van Vleck Endowment Fund purchase
Accession No.
2004.59a-c
Classification
Prints
Geography
Japan

Related

  • Mueller, Laura. "Competition and Collaboration: Japanese Prints of the Utagawa School." Leiden, The Netherlands: Hotei Publishing, 2007. p. 212, no. 207

  • 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

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