Utagawa KuniyoshiJapanese, 1797–1861Boyasha Sonnijo
Can I see it?
Unknown
Where is “Boyasha Sonnijo” now? Collection: Rijksmuseum, Amsterdam. Unknown.
Amsterdam, Netherlands
The owner is known; whether it is on view today is not.
- Source
- The museum
About the work
Museum text in Dutch
Boyasha Sonnijo worstelend met haar tegenstander en zijn paard in de sneeuw.
Rijksmuseum
Details
- Accession number
- RP-P-2008-247
What it shows
In the catalog
Sources
- Rijksmuseum
- Image: Rijksmuseum — public domain
In the life of Utagawa Kuniyoshi
The whole life1818–1826
Years of want: hardly any commissions
Only a few publishers agree to print his work, and he earns his living mostly by stuffing and repairing tatami mats; other accounts extend these years to 1827. He lives in constant need.
1818–1827
A meeting with Kunisada
At a desperate moment, when he has to sell used tatami mats, he happens to meet his prosperous fellow pupil Kunisada, whom he felt inferior in talent, and redoubles his efforts; there is no lasting ill feeling, and they later collaborate on a number of series.
1818–1827
Beauties and experiments with Western light and shadow
In these years he draws beautiful women (bijin-ga) and experiments with the large textile patterns and light-and-shadow effects found in Western art, though his attempts show more imitation than real understanding of these principles.
1827
Commission for “108 Heroes of the Suikoden”
The publisher Kagaya Kichibei commissions five sheets from him for the print series “108 Heroes of the Suikoden”; the sheets sell well, and Kuniyoshi is given all the remaining “heroes” of the series.
