Thank you for sharing this video on the life of Chikanobu. I didn't know he was a member of the samurai class but at the time of Meiji I suppose it wasn't as big a deal as in earlier eras, especially during Sharaku's time who was rumoured to be of the samurai class (maybe it was proven or disproven?) and therefore forbidden to partake of the pleasures and artistry of the floating world. It's also wonderful to see different genres from Chikanobu apart from the bijin-ga and Russo-Japanese war series. I enjoyed it.
These "deep dives" are a delight. Thanks! I sometimes wish you lingered a bit longer over the images, perhaps just a few seconds. Otherwise I am pausing repeatedly as I say wow! But I would go back and pause anyway. As a scholar of Asian religions, I am impressed by how little religious content there is among the prints. Was there such content and, if not why so?
Thanks Steve! I agree I tend to go a bit quick. I'm going to do more lingering and closeups in the future. There are actually many references to religion (in the prints), especially in the events depicted, the types of people, and the underlying stories. It's a topic I don't dig into unless it's overt. There are many series I know that focus on some aspect of some religion. Thanks for the suggestions.
Amazing information, thank you! I own one of his original prints, 'Tsunayoshi,' from the series, 'A Brief Account of the Tokugawa Lineage.' Description: 'Handsome scene from the life of the Tsunayoshi, the fifth Tokugawa shogun. A beauty waits at the garden gate as a young girl greets her with a lantern, gesturing towards the house where the Shogun Tsunayoshi is issuing the "Shorui Awaremi no Rei" or Edicts on Compassion for Living Things, which prevented dogs from being killed. This act earned him the title the "Dog Shogun." The beauty smiles slyly as she tilts her head, dressed in a blue kimono bordered with flowers and grasses. A large cherry tree blooms in the courtyard overlooking a lake, with stepping stones and a lantern on a pole.'
thanks for sharing..! a super nice video..! mm... there is an anecdote of him depicting the old meiji emperor as an skeleton dictating a new law it seems he was imprisoned for months hihi...dont remember if he was,- but is funny that print....is in wiki popsted... l iked always his work...! only have a few examples, until Chris introduced me to kunichika ...hihi...
