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Subject:Would appreciate verification of which Toyokuni Did It
Posted By: Bill H Sun, Aug 27, 2017 IP: 76.106.199.250
I've been trying to plumb the depths of collections at the Boston museum of Fine Arts to verify my hunch that this print is by Utagawa Kunisada I (Toyokuni III). An exact match for the date and censor seals, though I found some "close but no cigar" candidates in the 1850's and 60's. I did find apparent evidence that Toyokuni 3 had used what I take to be the nickname nest to his signature.
For some reason the MFA Boston's digital side is not friendly with my IE-11 browser but tends to make it crash regularly for no particular reason this I can identify. Anyway, after two days of trying to find a museum collection example of this particular print, I've come up empty-handed, except I did find another print by Utagawa Kunisada I dated to the 1830's and with a geisha figure in virtually the same pose. Another "close but no cigar", but I include the details in case of interest:
When an East Wind Melts the Ice (Tôfû kôri o toku), from the series Seventy-two Seasons (Shichijûni kô)
「七十二候 「東風解凍(とうふうこほりをとく)」
Japanese
Edo period
about early 1830s
Artist Utagawa Kunisada I (Toyokuni III) (Japanese, 1786–1864)
Dimensions
Vertical ôban; 37 x 25.7 cm (14 9/16 x 10 1/8 in.)
Accession Number
34.527
Medium or Technique
Woodblock print (nishiki-e); ink and color on paper
Not on View
Collections
Asia, Prints and Drawings
Classifications
Prints
Signed
Kôchôrô Kunisada ga
香蝶楼国貞画
Markings
Censor's seal: kiwame
改印:極
Provenance
1934, bequest of Nellie Parney Carter to the MFA. (Accession Date: October 4, 1934)
Credit Line
Nellie Parney Carter Collection—Bequest of Nellie Parney Carter
Museum of Fine Arts Boston
I'm hoping someone recognizes the first print show and can point me in the right direction to the details. I would be eternally grateful.
Thanks,
Bill H.
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