TSUKIOKA YOSHITOSHI: COMPETITION AMONG POWERFUL MAGICIANS (TRIPTYCH)

拍品描述

TSUKIOKA YOSHITOSHI: COMPETITION AMONG POWERFUL MAGICIANS (TRIPTYCH) By Tsukioka Yoshitoshi (1839-1892), signed Oju Ikkaisai Yoshitoshi ga (on the right sheet) and Ikkaisai Yoshitoshi ga (on the center and left sheets) Japan, dated 1869 Color woodblock print on paper. Vertical oban triptych. Signed Oju Ikkaisai Yoshitoshi ga (on the right sheet) and Ikkaisai Yoshitoshi ga (on the center and left sheets) with censor’s seal; publisher Masadaya Heikichi. Title Goketsu kijutsu kurabe (A Competition Among Powerful Magicians). An extraordinary early triptych by Yoshitoshi, this dynamic composition stages a supernatural contest among master magicians. On the right, a warrior astride a winged beast battles a gigantic snake, its tongue darting menacingly from its gaping jaws. At the center, a monstrous cat (bakeneko) faces off against an enormous rat, a direct reference to the sorcerer Nikki Danjo. To the left, an elderly magician sits astride a colossal toad, while another unfurls a scroll beside two large tengu, one brandishing a sword. SIZE of the sheet 35.9 x 24.2 cm (each) Tsukioka Yoshitoshi (1839-1892) was one of the leading woodblock print artists during the Meiji era (1868-1912) and one of the last to work in the traditional ukiyo-e manner. Born in Edo (present-day Tokyo), he showed a strong interest in classical Japanese literature and history. When he was eleven, he became a student at Kuniyoshi Utagawa’s studio. Under his teacher’s guidance, he showed exquisite draftsmanship skills and learned how to draw from life, something not necessarily part of the training of schools of painting and illustration in Japan. Museum comparison: A closely related print by the same artist, with similar seals, is in the Los Angeles County Museum of Art (LACMA), accession number M.84.31.437a-c.

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