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Kitagawa Utamaro ( Japanese: 喜多川 歌麿) (ca. 1753 - 1806) (the name has occasionally been rendered as Outamaro, but that usage is archaic) was a Japanese printmaker and painter, and is considered one of the greatest artists of woodblock prints ( ukiyo-e). He is known especially for his masterfully composed studies of women, known as bijin-ga , although he also produced nature studies, particularly illustrated books of insects.
His work reached Europe in the mid 19th century, where it was very popular, enjoying particular acclaim in France. He influenced the European Impressionists, particularly with his use of partial views, with an emphasis on light and shade.
Biographical details for Utamaro are extremely limited, and each reference one consults on him gives an substantially different account.
Various accounts claim that was born in either Edo, Kyoto, Osaka (the three main cities of Japan), or a provincial town (no one is sure exactly which one) in around 1753; the exact date is also uncertain. Another long-standing tradition has is that he was born in the Yoshiwara, the courtesan district of Edo, the son of a tea-house owner, but there is no evidence of this. His original name was Kitagawa Ichitaro.
It is generally agreed that he became a pupil of the painter Toriyama Sekien while he was still a child, and there are many authorities who believe that Utamaro was his son as well. He lived in Sekien's house while he was growing up, and the relationship continued until Sekien's death in 1788Events January 1 First edition of The Times previously The Daily Universal Register was published. January 2 Georgia ratifies the United States Constitution and becomes the 4th U. January 9 Connecticut ratifies the United States Constitution and becomes t.
Sekien was originally trained in the aristocratic Kano schoolKano school ( Kano-ha) is a school of professional artists in Japan. The school was founded by Kano Masanobu. Painters who belong to the school: Kano Masanobu (1434 1530) the founder Oguri Sotan (1413 81) Kano Motonobu (1476 1559) Kano Eitoku (1543 90) Ka of painting, but in middle age he started to lean toward the popular (or ukiyo-e) school. Sekien is known to have had a number of other pupils, none of any distinction.
Utamaro, in common with most Japanese, changed his name as he became mature, and took the name Ichitaro Yusuke as he became older. He apparently also married, although little is known about his wife, and he apparently had no children.
His first major professional artistic work, at about the age of 22, in 1775Events February 9 American Revolutionary War: British Parliament declares Massachusetts in rebellion March 23 American Revolutionary War: Patrick Henry delivers his speech " give me liberty or give me death" in Williamsburg, Virginia. April 14 American Re, seems to have been the cover for a KabukiKabuki is a form of traditional Japanese theatre. The individual Kanji characters, from left to right, mean sing , dance , and performer . The history of kabuki begins in 1603, when Okuni, an attendant from Izumo Shrine, began performing a new style of da playbook, under the go ( art-nameAn art-name (in Japanese, go is a pseudonym, or penname, used by an Japanese artist, which they sometimes change. In some cases, artists adopted different go at different stages of their career, usually to mark significant changes in their life. One of th) of Toyoaki. He then produced a number of actor and warrior prints, along with theatre programmes, and other such material. From the spring of 1781Events January 5 American Revolutionary War: Richmond, Virginia is burned by British naval forces led by Benedict Arnold. January 30 Articles of Confederation ratified by 13th state, Maryland. January William Pitt the Younger, later Prime Minister, enters, he switched his go to Utamaro, and started painting and designing fairly forgettable woodblock prints of women.
At some point in the middle 1780sEvents and Trends 1787 United States Constitution 1788 Great Britain established the prison colony of New South Wales in Australia. 1789 French revolution World Leaders King Louis XVI ( France) King George III ( Great Britain) Emperor Joseph II ( Holy Rom, probably 1783Events February 3 American Revolutionary War: Spain recognizes United States independence. February 4 American Revolutionary War: Great Britain formally declares that it will cease hostilities with the United States of America. May 18 Saint John, New Brun, he went to live with the young rising publisher Tsutaya Juzaburo , with whom he apparently lived for about 5 years. He seems to have become a principal artist for the Tsutaya firm. His output of prints for the next few years was sporadic, as he produced mostly illustrations for books of kyoka (literally 'crazy verse', a parody of the classical waka form). He seems to have produced nothing at all that has survived in the period 1790-1792.
In about 1791 Utamaro gave up designing prints for books and concentrated on making half-length single portraits of women, rather than prints of women in groups, as favoured by other ukiyo-e artists. It was in 1793 that he really achieved success as an artist, and at this point his semi-exclusive arrangement with the publisher Tsutaya Juzaburo was terminated. He then went on to produce a number of very famous series, all featuring women of the Yoshiwara district.
Over the years, he also occupied himself with a number of volumes of nature studies and shun-ga (literally spring pictures - a euphemism for erotica). In 1797, Tsutaya Juzaburo died, and Utamaro apparently was very upset by the loss of his long-time friend and supporter. Some commentators feel that his work after this never reached the heights it did before.
In 1804, at the height of his success, he ran into legal trouble by publishing prints related to a banned historical novel. The prints. entitled Hideyoshi and his 5 Concubines, depicted the military ruler Toyotomi Hideyoshi's wife and concubines; Consequently, he was accused of insulting Hideyoshi's dignity. He was sentenced to be handcuffed for 50 days (some accounts say he was briefly imprisoned). According to some sources, the experience crushed him emotionally and ended his career as an artist.
He died two years later, on the 20th day of the 9th month, 1806, aged about fifty-three, in Edo.