Page 141 - September 21 2021 Important Japanese Art Christie's NYC

191 UTAGAWA HIROSHIGE (1797-1858)

Asakusa tanbo Torinomachi

mode (Asakusa Ricefields and
Torinomachi Festival)

Woodblock print, from the seires Meisho Edo
hyakkei (One hundred famous views of Edo),
signed Hiroshige ga, published by Uoya Eikichi,
11th month 1857
Vertical oban: 14¬ x 9æ in. (37.1 x 24.8 cm.)

$8,000-12,000

Resting on a window ledge, a white cat gazes out through a
barred window over the Asakusa rice-fields below. A flock of
birds descend towards Mount Fuji in the southwest and a long
silhouetted line of a festival procession extends across the paddies.
Here was the sight of Otori Shrine, worshipped particularly by
the commoner class in the Edo period for commercial favour and
fortune, and communally celebrated in the Torinomachi Festival
in November.
The room seemingly belongs to a courtesan from the Yoshiwara
district, with the raised viewpoint suggesting that it is located
somewhere on the upper levels of an establishment. Beside the
cat is a small towel (tenugui), which has been left draped on the
window ledge, and a blue and white tea bowl (chawan) decorated
with karakusa scrolls. Hairpins in their wrapping lay on the floor
next to what appears to be a folded cloth, mostly obscured from
view. The wallpaper is decorated with pairs of stylised plovers
(chidori), one in white and the other with the colour inverted.
The printer masterfully uses the natural woodgrain of the
woodblock to lend texture to the wallpaper design. The subtle
touches of the courtesan’s presence provide the room with a
feeling of intimacy.