Scary Pictures of Ukiyo-e

Planned Exhibition

 2016,  August 2^nd ～28^th

 

(will be closed on August  8, 15, 22nd)

 

 

 

Test of Courage at the Museum

“Scary”, “Horrifying” – fear is a universal feeling that people have. People hate and avoid those that are unknown, dangerous, and weird. However, as is evident in the word “Curiosity overcomes fear” fear also brings strong feelings of curiosity. At times, even fear close to danger can be a thrilling excitement for people. Perhaps it is this “Curiosity overcomes fear”  that create the popularity of horror and suspense.
People of the Edo were also very interested in scary, horrifying things. Ghost stories were popular as represented in the Kabuki play, “Tōkaidō Yotsuya Kaidan” by Tsuruya Nanboku IV. There were also many Ukiyo-e depicting ghosts and horrifying bloody scenes. At this exhibition, we will look at horror of the Edo from Ukiyo-e. There are ghosts full of grudge from their lifetime such as Kasane, Oiwa, and Sutoku-in, as well as ogres, sea monsters, demon spiders, other weird-looking creatures and pictures full of blood. We hope you enjoy the variety of fear with a pleasant chill.

1, Ghosts

Ghosts are departed souls wandering in the world after death. In the late Edo period, ghost and monster themed novels and kabuki plays became popular, and many kinds of ghosts were depicted in ukiyo-e wood-block prints. In this section, we will introduce the figures of horrible ghosts such as Kasane, Oiwa, Okiku, Asakura Tōgo and Sutoku-in, and others that died an unnatural death and accomplished revenge with a terrible grudge.     

Utagawa Kunisada (ToyokuniⅢ)　“Parody of Thirty-six Poems : Ghost of Kasane with the Poem of Fujiwara no Toshiyuki Ason”  (Ōta Memorial Museum of Art)

Utagawa Yoshiiku “One Hundred Ghost Stories: Ghost” (Ōta Memorial Museum of Art)

Tsukioka Yoshitoshi “Ghost of Saigō Takamori Holding a Petition” (Ōta Memorial Museum of Art)

2, Specters

Utagawa Kunisada (ToyokuniⅢ)　“Kabuki Play,  “Tōkaidō Iroha Nikki”” (Ōta Memorial Museum of Art)

Tsukioka Yoshitoshi “Illustration for a Newspaper called Yūbin Hōchi Sinbun, No.663: Monster Attacking a Woman” (Ōta Memorial Museum of Art)

 

Utagawa Kuniyoshi “Minamoto no Yorimitsu Exterminating Shutendōji of Mt.Ōe-yama “(Ōta Memorial Museum of Art)

Utagawa Kuniyoshi “Minamoto no Yorimitsu and His Subordinates Attacked by Demon Spider” (Ōta Memorial Museum of Art)

3, Blood-stained Pictures

During　the late-Edo and Meiji periods, the genre of blood-stained pictures became popular with the success of the collaboration series by Tsukioka Yoshitoshi and Utagawa Yoshiiku titled “Twenty-eight Famous Murders with Verse”. Some pictures depicted kabuki plays and storytelling while others depict realistic themes such as the “ Yoshitoshi’s Selection of One Hundred Warriors”, whose theme is the Battle of Ueno. In this section, we will introduce horrible bloodstained pictures that well reflect the savageness of society during unquiet times.

Utagawa Kuniyoshi “Mirror of Our Country’s Heroes：Ishikawa Tōsuke Sadatomo” (Private Collection)

Tsukioka Yoshitoshi “Twenty-eight Famous Murders with Verse: Naosuke Gonbei” (Private Collection)

Tsukioka Yoshitoshi “Yoshitoshi’s Selection of One Hundred Warriors : Reisei Hangan Takatoyo” (Private Collection)

Tsukioka Yoshitoshi “Illustration for a Newspaper called Yūbin Hōchi Sinbun, No.565 : Tajima Seitarō Murdering His Young Wife” (Ōta Memorial Museum of Art)

 Translation Supervised by Japanese Students Association of Princeton University

Admission

Calendar

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