(1797 - 1861)
FOUR DRAWINGS IN SUMI, ORIGINALLY PART OF ONE OF THE ALBUMS BROUGHT TO THE WEST FROM JAPAN BY THE PARISIAN ART DEALER S. BING
A) Brush with black ink (sumi) on very thin paper, with one pentimento 296 x 215 mm. Two sketches of the actor Nakamura Utaemon IV (1798-1852), both preparatory for two prints of the series Comic Paper Lantern Chushingura (c. 1830).
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B) Brush with black ink (sumi) on very thin paper, 224 x 194 mm. Studies of heads, figures, arms and hands, on the recto and on the verso.
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C) Brush with black ink (sumi) on very thin paper, 192 x 150 mm. A sheet of studies
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D)Brush with black ink (sumi) on very thin paper, 178 x 125 mm. A sheet of studies for tittle panels of print series, including a sketch of the personal seal of Kuniyoshi, the kirimon.
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PROVENANCE: originally from one of the albums brought to the West from Japan by the Parisian art dealer S. Bing.
LITERATURE: Marco Fagioli, Utagawa Kuniyoshi, 90 disegni, Florence, 1985; nos. 18, 39, 67 an 69, illustrated.
The son of a silk-dyer, at the age of fourteen Kuniyoshi joined the Utagawa school, then headed by Toyokuni I. Kuniyoshi achieved his commercial and artistic breakthrough in 1827 with the first designs of the series the 108 heroes of the Suikoden. This series, based on an old Chinese novel from the 14th century, was about rebels and bandits. The artist designed many other successful prints of warriors and heroes and was even nicknamed Warrior print Kuniyoshi, but in fact he contributed to every branch of Ukiyo-e: theatrical prints, legendary and historical subjects, women, landscapes, comics, surimono, fan-prints and book-illustrations.
