ANTIQUE  ( SHUNGA )  WOODBLOCK

KORYUSAI  Isoda  ( 1735 ~ 1790 )

HARUNOBU  Suzuki ( 1725 ~ 1770 )

Shunga, Japanese woodblock print, Hokusai, Kunisada, Utamaro, Kuniyoshi. Harunobu, Koryusai, Eisen.Utagawa school,Torii,Octopus.

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[...] “  Koryusai was, like his teacher and friend Harunobu, a prolific artist. Born of samurai stock and associated with Tsuchiya family, Koryusai moved to Edo following the death of his lord and settled in the Yagenbori district, near Ryogoku Bridge. He designed chuban prints, numerous hashira-e (‘pillar pictures’) and a substantial number of shunga. Koryusai’s early work was faithful to the style of his teacher Harunobu, but his female forms became more robust once he began working in the larger oban format in the second half of his career...[...]

It is probably correct to say that the enlarged format offered by the oban resulted in a focus on genitalia, and it’s characteristic distortion in shunga after Koryusai’s time has received so much attention and humorous comment. Koryusai’s' oeuvre is now well documented: he produced at least fifty series and illustrated books, the majority being nishiki-e (full-color print). In his relatively short career Koryusai must have been produced around 1,000 shunga designs, divided between prints that were published individually or as albums and book illustrations.”[...] (Chris Uhlenbeck – Japanese Erotic Fantasies, Sexual Imagery of the Edo Period)

If you click on the following link you can find more info on > Koryusai.

 

 


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Mature Male And Adolescent Lover – Voyeur – Isoda Koryusai – c.1770.

Shunga  KORYUSAI  Isoda  ( 1735 ~ 1790 )

Mature Male And Adolescent Lover – Voyeur – Isoda Koryusai – c.1770.

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Description:

Original antique Japanese color woodblock print by Isoda Koryusai (1735-1790). Shunga (Erotic print). Date: c.1770.
Chuban yoko-e size: 10” x 7 1/3” inches. From an untitled series Fine impression, very good color and condition.
Usual vertical centerfold and vertical folds on both sides of the print, otherwise very good state.

“An older male makes love to an adolescent girl. Another young woman spies on them while making contact 
with the man.“


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Early Rape Design – Molestation Of A Seamstress – Isoda Koryusai – c.1770.

Shunga  KORYUSAI  Isoda  ( 1735 ~ 1790 )

Early Rape Design – Molestation Of A Seamstress – Isoda Koryusai – c.1770.

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Description:

Original antique Japanese color woodblock print by Isoda Koryusai (1735-1790). Shunga (Erotic print). Date: c.1770/71.
Chuban yoko-e size: 10 1/3” x 7 4/5” inches. From an untitled series Fine impression, near fine color and condition.
Virtually full size. Slightly backed, very minor marks and flaws only. This print has been exceptionally well preserved with
fresh colors.

“A young girl on the second floor of a house is disturbed in her sewing work by a hairy intruder with a shaggy beard. We can only see part of the girl s face, but it might very well be that she is not amused, and that this furry man is an uninvited burglar who as forced the luscious sewer to have sex with him. She is not embracing him at all moreover, her left hand seems to be pushing him away. The girl’s unfinished needlework can be seen in the bottom right: a haribako (sewing box, lit. ‘needle box’) with a pin cushion on top, a striped piece of cloth, a pair of scissors and a ruler. The brown spots on the orange-colored staircase at the bottom left of the image are caused by oxidation of the colour pigments.“

This is one of the earliest examples in the shunga genre that features an explicit rape !

Reference: p.90/91 (Fig.C.6) Japanese Erotic Prints: Shunga by Harunobu & Koryusai’ by Inge Klompmakers.


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Early Chuban Koryusai Shunga - c.1770.

Early Chuban Koryusai Shunga - c.1770.

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Description:

Original antique Japanese color woodblock Koryusai (act. mid-1760s to 1780s). Shunga (Erotic print). Date: c.1770. 
Chuban yoko-e size: 7 3/4" x 10" inches. Fine impression (with gauffrage), extraordinarily fresh and vivid color and very good condition. Full size, slight vertical and horizontal fold, very light overall wear and creases. The artist's seal (unusually) is in the 
curtain behind the figures. Koryusai and Harunobu were the first of the Ukiyo-e masters who sometimes left a hidden "signature"!

Reference: p.8 (Ill.4) in Vol.3 of ' The Complete Ukiyo-e Shunga' by Richard Lane

This print has been exceptionally well preserved with the highly fugitive blue pigment still intact !


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Very Rare Koryusai - Shunga - Mosquito Net - c.1775.

Very Rare Koryusai - Shunga - Mosquito Net - c.1775.

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Description:

Original Japanese color woodblock Koryusai (act. mid -1760s to 1780s). Shunga (Erotic print), Date: c.1775. 
Fine impression (with various gauffrage details!), very good color and near fine condition. Oban yoko-e size: 14 2/3" x 10" inches. 
Series: 'Sensual Colours, a Phoenix Released in the Field' (Enshoku hoya ho). Some slight fading but otherwise in an excellent state for a print of this early period !

Reference:  Pl. 27 (p.108) 'Japanese Erotic Fantasies' by C. Uhlenbeck and M. Winkel.
                  
About this design:

"Sensual Colours and Twelve Holds of Love (cat.no.28) are Koryusai's only oban-size shunga. 
Through the open sliding doors we spy an adulterous tryst between two lovers. The woman's supposedly older, less attractive husband sleeps under the mosquito-netting. The mosquito-net creates spatial depth and seperates the cuckolded husband from the lovers". ('Japanese Erotic Fantasies' by C. Uhlenbeck/ M. Winkel).

This design is generally considered to be the masterpiece of the Sensual Colours series !


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Original Rare Antique Shunga 1772/73 Koryusai.

Original Rare Antique Shunga 1772/73 Koryusai.

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1st Edition Print !! Circa 1770.

Description:

Original antique Japanese color woodblock Isoda Koryusai (fl. mid-1760s to 1780s) Shunga (Spring picture) 
Title: ' Furyu juniki no eika' (Prosperous flowers of the elegant twelve seasons), the 9th Month (Kikuzuki), c. 1772-73 , 
Chuban orihon format: 7 3/4 x 10 7/8 inches. Very good condition. Technique: Nishiki-e (brocade print) Original centerfold, 
minor rubbing. Use of Kimedashi ('blind print') on the backwall (vertical white lines!) and on the kimono of the sleeping man ! 

Koryusai was a principal direct pupil and friend of Harunobu, he was a former samurai living in Edo (Tokyo). Koryusai seems to have been trained first in the Kano style of painting, turning to Ukiyo-e in the mid-1760s, shortly after Harunobu's rise to fame. Harunobu and Koryusai were the first full-colour woodblock print masters! Koryusai's genius was more earthy in comparison with the dreamlike designs of Harunobu. This tendency towards realism is doubtless Koryusai's principal point of divergence from Harunobu. He created a feeling of intimacy with real life. He's well known because of his development of a unique style of rich decorative coloring and especially for his re-introduction of opaque orange (formerly red lead but now often iron oxide), which had characterized the hand-colored orange prints of several generations earlier. The lovely pastel coloring of his shunga series produces a remarkably refined atmosphere for the curious erotic events displayed! Koryusai was also one of the first print masters to produce Kacho-e. (flower-and-bird pictures!) Many critics consider Koryusai's work in the pillar-print and shunga categories among the glories of the Ukiyo-e! His artistic efforts were praised by the shogun, who bestowed the honorary title Hokkyõ on him. This title was normally only given to Buddhist priests, but craftsmen were occasionally honoured in this way as well. 

Richard Lane (on Koryusai in the book "Images from the Floating World"): " Koryusai's most original contribution to Ukiyo-e probably lies in the field of erotic prints. Here his relation to his master is very much like that of Sugimura to Moronobu nearly a century earlier. Whereas Koryusai's style was sometimes gross in its attempts at depicting the dream world of Harunobu, in the field of sexual art he excelled, expressing colorful vitality which is sometimes even more effective than is mentor's. In color and line, in the creation of the total atmosphere of physical love, the best of Koryusai's erotic color prints are unsurpassed in Japanese art; and this explains the high esteem in which he is held, for few peoples have ever pursued the cult of artistic erotica as assiduously as the Japanese".

Richard Lane is one of the foremost experts on Japanese prints ! 

A rare museum quality woodblockprint masterpiece in an exceptional condition

These kind of woodblock prints are very hard to find and mostly in the possession of collectors and museums and are 
easily offered for over $4000,-
!
!


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Original Antique Shunga MASTERPIECE. Koryusai. 1775.

Original Antique Shunga MASTERPIECE. Koryusai. 1775.

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Description:

Original antique Japanese color woodblock Koryusai Isoda (fl. mid-1760s to 1780s), Shunga (Spring picture). 
Title:  "Couple and Peeking Boy". from the series: "Enshoku Ho Ya Ho" (Sensual Colors, Phoenix Free in a Field). 
Date: ca.1775. Oban yoko-e format: 9 1/2" x 14,5" inches. Very good condition, color and impression. 
Technique: Nishiki-e ( brocade print) with Karazuri (embossing), giving dimension to the pattern on the blanket and in the background on the design of the sliding doors! Slightly trimmed, slight centerfold and soiling, minor rubbing and backing. This design is signed which is rare (Red seal signature on the folding screen reading Koryu) ! 

Koryusai was a principal direct pupil and friend of Harunobu, he was a former samurai living in Edo (Tokyo). Koryusai seems to have been trained first in the Kano style of painting, turning to Ukiyo-e in the mid-1760s, shortly after Harunobu's rise to fame. Harunobu and Koryusai were the first full-colour woodblock print masters! Koryusai's genius was more earthy in comparison with the dreamlike designs of Harunobu.

Reference:  p.186 (Plate 6.24) in 'Shunga, the Art of Love in Japan' by Tom and Mary Evans. (see picture !)

Comments:
Marco Fagioli (on the 'Enshoku Ho Ya Ho' -series): " The album 'Enshoku Ho Ya Ho' , from which these prints of the oban yoko-e format are taken, is considered one of the most beautiful by Koryusai". (p.60 in "Shunga, the Erotic Art of Japan")

Dr. Richard Lane (on Koryusai): "..Koryusai's most original contribution to Ukiyo-e probably lies in the field of erotic prints. Here his relation to his master is very much like that of Sugimura to Moronobu nearly a century earlier. Whereas Koryusai's style was sometimes gross in its attempts at depicting the dream world of Harunobu, in the field of sexual art he excelled, expressing colorful vitality which is sometimes even more effective than is mentor's. In color and line, in the creation of the total atmosphere of physical love, the best of Koryusai's erotic color prints are unsurpassed in Japanese art; and this explains the high esteem in which he is held, for few peoples have ever pursued the cult of artistic erotica as assiduously as the Japanese". ( in the book   "Images from the Floating World")    

Dr. Richard Lane (1926-2004) was one of the foremost experts on Japanese prints !   

A rare museum quality woodblockprint masterpiece in an exceptional condition ! 


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Original Rare Antique Shunga 1772/73 Koryusai (2nd Month)

Original Rare Antique Shunga 1772/73 Koryusai (2nd Month)

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Description:

Original antique Japanese color woodblock Koryusai (fl. mid-1760s to 1780s), Shunga (Spring picture). 
Title: 
' Furyu juniki no eika' (Prosperous flowers of the elegant twelve seasons), the 2nd Month (Kisaragi), c.1772-73, Chuban orihon format: 7 3/4 x 10 3/4 inches. Very good condition. Original centerfold, very slightly trimmed, minor rubbing, soiling and minor repairs ( professionally restored!). Use of Kimedashi ('Blind print') on the wall in the background! Description: "A young boy and girl sit behind a low desk. The boy is rubbing an ink-stick on the ink-stone of a suzuribako, while the girl rests her head on the desk. The sleeves of her kimono almost cover the whole surface, including the paper and the books on the desk. A torii or entrance gate to a shrine and flying banners can be made out at the end of a path beyond the shoji (paper sliding doors). Sexual activities are not explicitly shown here, the emphasis being more on the suggestion of sex. The desk hides the genitals from the viewer- we can see the boy's right hand, but where has his left hand gone and what is it doing? Maybe the person peeping through the holes in the damaged sliding doors has a better view. This image refers to the second month (Kisaragi), which is also expressed in the haiku in the right margin. The poem implies that the girl is about to experience her first sexual encounter".

Reference:  p.104 / 105 in "Japanese erotic prints shunga by Harunobu & Koryusai"- Inge Klompmakers.  

Quote:  
"Although the album comes from a transitional phase of his career and predates his full stylistic maturity, it must be accounted Koryusai's masterpiece of the shunga genre". (On the Prosperous Flowers.. series in 'Shunga, the Art of Love in Japan' by Tom and Mary Evans on p175 and 184 !) 

Koryusai was a principal direct pupil and friend of Harunobu, he was a former samurai living in Edo (Tokyo). Koryusai seems to have been trained first in the Kano style of painting, turning to Ukiyo-e in the mid-1760s, shortly after Harunobu's rise to fame. Harunobu and Koryusai were the first full-colour woodblock print masters! Koryusai's genius was more earthy in comparison with the dreamlike designs of Harunobu. 


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Original Rare Antique Shunga 1772/73 Koryusai (3rd Month)

Original Rare Antique Shunga 1772/73 Koryusai (3rd Month)

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Description:

Original antique Japanese color woodblock Koryusai (fl. mid-1760s to 1780s), Shunga (Spring picture). 
Title:
 ' Furyu juniki no eika' (Prosperous flowers of the elegant twelve seasons), the 3rd Month (Sakurazuki), c.1772-73, Chuban orihon format: 7 3/4 x 10 7/8 inches. Very good condition. Original centerfold, minor rubbing and soiling.  Small professional repair on top of the centerfold.  Use of Kimedashi ('Blind print') on various parts of the kimono's! Description: " A man wearing a fox-mask and his lady lover have sex under a cherry tree. Although they have tried to cover themselves with a red cloth, they have been discovered by a young girl. This print relates to the third month or Sakurazuki when cherry trees (sakura) start to blossom. People go on blossom-viewing excursions, and feasts and dances are held to celebrate the occasion. The fox man, who is one of the dancers, is now performing backstage".

Reference:  
p.106 / 107 in "Japanese erotic prints shunga by Harunobu & Koryusai"- Inge Klompmakers. 
p.181 (6.20) in "Shunga, the Art of Love in Japan"- Tom and Mary Evans.

Quote: 
"Although the album comes from a transitional phase of his career and predates his full stylistic maturity, it must be accounted Koryusai's masterpiece of the shunga genre". (On the Prosperous Flowers.. series in 'Shunga, the Art of Love in Japan' by Tom and Mary Evans on p175 and 184 !) 

Koryusai was a principal direct pupil and friend of Harunobu, he was a former samurai living in Edo (Tokyo). Koryusai seems to have been trained first in the Kano style of painting, turning to Ukiyo-e in the mid-1760s, shortly after Harunobu's rise to fame. Harunobu and Koryusai were the first full-colour woodblock print masters! Koryusai's genius was more earthy in comparison with the dreamlike designs of Harunobu. 


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Original Rare Antique Shunga 1772/73 Koryusai (7th Month)

Original Rare Antique Shunga 1772/73 Koryusai (7th Month)

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Description:

Original antique Japanese color woodblock Koryusai (fl. mid-1760s to 1780s), Shunga (Spring picture). 
Title:  ' Furyu juniki no eika' (Prosperous flowers of the elegant twelve seasons), the 7th Month (Fuzuki), c.1772-73, Chuban orihon format: 7 3/4 x 10 7/8 inches. Very good condition. Original centerfold, minor rubbing and a very small repair. Use of Kimedashi ('Blind print') on various parts! Description: " This print depicting a contended family shows that life goes on while making love. The woman and oldest child are writing calligraphy on coloured sheets of paper, which will be cut into different shapes later. The father observes this creativity and holds the youngest boy in his arms while simultaneously penetrating his wife. This scene is set in the seventh month (Fuzuki) of the year and the family is preparing for the Tanabata Festival. This festival takes place on the seventh day, during which strips of different coloured paper with poems written on them are attached to bamboo branches. The Tanabata or Weaving Loom Festival originates from a fairytale relating how two stars, which appear opposite from each other in the Milky Way (Amanogawa or 'Heavenly River'), were only able to meet once a year. Kengyu or 'Cowherd' was the name of the first star and the other was named Shokujo or ' Weaver'. Weaver, the daughter of the King of Heaven, fell in love with the cowherd and after they were married, she moved to the cowherd's side of the Milky Way. Consumed by love, both the cowherd and the weaver neglected their duties, upsetting the king so much that he forced his daughter to return and take up her weaving work again. He allowed the couple to reunite once a year, on the seventh day of the seventh month. The word ' Tanabata' is also written in the bottom right margin".

Reference:  p.112 / 113 in "Japanese erotic prints shunga by Harunobu & Koryusai"- Inge Klompmakers.  

Quote:  
"Although the album comes from a transitional phase of his career and predates his full stylistic maturity, it must be accounted Koryusai's masterpiece of the shunga genre". (On the Prosperous Flowers.. series in 'Shunga, the Art of Love in Japan' by Tom and Mary Evans on p175 and 184!) 

Koryusai was a principal direct pupil and friend of Harunobu, he was a former samurai living in Edo (Tokyo). Koryusai seems to have been trained first in the Kano style of painting, turning to Ukiyo-e in the mid-1760s, shortly after Harunobu's rise to fame. Harunobu and Koryusai were the first full-colour woodblock print masters! Koryusai's genius was more earthy in comparison with the dreamlike designs of Harunobu. 


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Original Rare Antique Shunga 1772/73 Koryusai (10th Month)

Original Rare Antique Shunga 1772/73 Koryusai (10th Month)

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Description:

Original antique Japanese color woodblock Koryusai (fl. mid-1760s to 1780s), Shunga (Spring picture). 
Title:
 ' Furyu juniki no eika' (Prosperous flowers of the elegant twelve seasons), the 10th Month (Ryogetsu), c.1772-73, Chuban orihon format: 7 3/4 x 10 7/8 inches. Very good condition. Original centerfold, minor rubbing, soiling, small professional repairs and some minor water-type staining. Use of Kimedashi ('Blind print') on various parts! Description: "A dynamic print referring to the tenth month (Ryogetsu). This image shows a couple making love so wildly that they have sent the mochi (rice cakes) flying through the air and the woman's hair has come loose. There is a serving tray full of mochi next to the man's sword and fan in the left foreground. Mochi are made of two round balls of pounded rice placed on top of each other. The bottom part is bigger than the upper part. Mochi are often served as a New Year's dish".

Reference:  p.118 / 119 in "Japanese erotic prints shunga by Harunobu & Koryusai"- Inge Klompmakers. 

Quote: 
"Although the album comes from a transitional phase of his career and predates his full stylistic maturity, it must be accounted Koryusai's masterpiece of the shunga genre". (On the Prosperous Flowers.. series in 'Shunga, the Art of Love in Japan' by Tom and Mary Evans on p175 and 184 !) 

Koryusai was a principal direct pupil and friend of Harunobu, he was a former samurai living in Edo (Tokyo). Koryusai seems to have been trained first in the Kano style of painting, turning to Ukiyo-e in the mid-1760s, shortly after Harunobu's rise to fame. Harunobu and Koryusai were the first full-colour woodblock print masters! Koryusai's genius was more earthy in comparison with the dreamlike designs of Harunobu. 


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Original Rare Antique Shunga 1772/73 Koryusai (11th Month)

Original Rare Antique Shunga 1772/73 Koryusai (11th Month)

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Description:

Original antique Japanese color woodblock Koryusai (fl. mid-1760s to 1780s), Shunga (Spring picture). 
Title: 
' Furyu juniki no eika' (Prosperous flowers of the elegant twelve seasons), the 11th Month (Kagurazuki), c.1772-73, Chuban orihon format: 7 3/4 x 10 7/8 inches. Very good condition. Original centerfold, minor rubbing, soiling and minor (professional) repairs on the centerfold. Use of Kimedashi ('Blind print') on the kimono of the man and the woman and on the backwall ! Description: "A representation of the eleventh month (Kagurazuki). While making love, a couple are watched by a young girl, probably their daughter. There is a birdcage next to the trio, which is covered with a cloth and has a bundle of paper strips on top of it. A wooden well and a pine tree can be seen outside. The lower half of the text in the right margin refers to the cold season, and reads Nugumedori or ' Warming-up bird'. This term is used for adult birds who warm their new-born chicks under their wings, much like the girl in this image, who is taken under her parents' 'wings'. Another explanation of nugumedori is that on a cold winter night, a falcon catches a small bird and grips it tightly in order to warm its own legs. This ' warming-up bird' is set free the following morning".

Reference:  p.120 / 121 in "Japanese erotic prints shunga by Harunobu & Koryusai"- Inge Klompmakers.

Quote:
"Although the album comes from a transitional phase of his career and predates his full stylistic maturity, it must be accounted Koryusai's masterpiece of the shunga genre". (On the Prosperous Flowers.. series in 'Shunga, the Art of Love in Japan' by Tom and Mary Evans on p175 and 184 !) 

Koryusai was a principal direct pupil and friend of Harunobu, he was a former samurai living in Edo (Tokyo). Koryusai seems to have been trained first in the Kano style of painting, turning to Ukiyo-e in the mid-1760s, shortly after Harunobu's rise to fame. Harunobu and Koryusai were the first full-colour woodblock print masters! Koryusai's genius was more earthy in comparison with the dreamlike designs of Harunobu. 


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Original Rare Antique Shunga 1772 / 73 Koryusai  (12th Month)

Original Rare Antique Shunga 1772 / 73 Koryusai  (12th Month)

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Description:

Original antique Japanese color woodblock Koryusai (fl. mid-1760s to 1780s), Shunga (Spring picture). 
Title:
 ' Furyu juniki no eika' (Prosperous flowers of the elegant twelve seasons), the 12th Month (Rogetsu), 
c.1772-73, Chuban orihon format: 7 3/4 x 10 7/8 inches. Very good condition. Original centerfold, minor rubbing,
soiling, some small repairs (professionally done!) and minor water-type staining. 
Use of Kimedashi ('Blind print') on various parts! 

Reference:  
p.122 / 123  in "Japanese erotic prints shunga by Harunobu & Koryusai"- Inge Klompmakers. 
p.183 (6.22) in "Shunga, the Art of Love in Japan"- Tom and Mary Evans.


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Original Koryusai Shunga c.1760. Futon.

Original Koryusai Shunga c.1760. Futon.

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Description:

Original antique Japanese single color woodblock Koryusai (fl. 1760-1780's). Very good condition, color and impression. Date: c.1760's. Chuban size: 7 1/4" x 10" inches. Shunga (Erotic print) depiction of a intimate couple in front of a folding screen on a red futon ! Embossing on various parts! Slightly trimmed into image, album backed, centerfold (some separation and repair), a few small hole repairs, light wear and soiling, otherwise very good state! The location of Koryusai's signature in this print is worth noting: the red tobacco pouch has the characters Koryu written on it! Harunobu and Koryusai were the first full-colour woodblock print masters! Koryusai's genius was more earthy in comparison with the dreamlike designs of Harunobu. 

A beautiful shunga design !

 

Harunobu  Suzuki  ( 1725 ~ 1770 )

 

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Chuban Shunga – Harunobu – Water Lelies – c.1769.

 

 

Suzuki Harunobu  (c.1724 - 1770).

 

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Description:

Original antique Japanese color woodblock by Suzuki Harunobu (c.1724–1770). Shunga (Erotic picture). 
Date: c.1769. Chuban yoko-e size: 7 2/3” x 10 2/3” inches. Fine impression, very good color and condition. Series: ‘Furyu Edo Hyakkei: Ueno no Bansho (Eight Fashionable Views of Edo: Vespers Bedmate at Ueno)’. Slightly backed, minor wear and soiling, marks and flaws.Some very small repairs.

“A couple entwined around each other watch the water lelies in Ueno.”

The poem featured in the above cloud is a parody associated with Mii no bansho (Evening Bell at Mii), which is one of theOmi Hakkei (Eight Views of Omi), a popular visual parody based on the classic Chinese theme Eight Views of the Xiao and the Xiang. A poem found on a Harunobu chuban from circa 1768 (Waterhouse, no. 316) shifts the 'Evening Bell' from Miidera to Ueno:

kono yama no On this holy hill
koro machietaru we waited for the season
hana sakari of the flower blossom:
yoso ni wa tsuke yo sound your doleful note elsewhere
iriai no kane vespers bell of Ueno!

The poem on this shunga print also places the bell in Ueno but in a further erotic parody of the theme. The phrase 'iriai no kana' is replaced with 'ireai no ane'; and 'sho' for concubine replaces 'sho' for bell. The poem explains the young man is on his yadosagari, the annual break given to the samurai for home leave which was granted for a few days in the 3rd month and was typically either spent at home or at an inn. The Shinobazu Pond at Ueno was well-known for its lotus and for the deai-chaya (meeting tea-houses) which had rooms overlooking the pond.

kono hodo mo This is the extent
sazo tsutaetaru to which he as passed it on
yadosagari during his home leave:
yoban tsuzukete four times in succession he
ireai no ane joined with the elder sister!
Waterhouse, The Harunobu Decade, 2013, nos. 316 & 459 (and poem translations)

Reference: on p.21 (Ill.6) in Japanese Erotic Prints (2001) by Inge Klompmakers.


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Chuban Shunga – Suzuki Harunobu – Young Couple And Peeking Girl – c.1760.

Suzuki Harunobu   鈴木 春信

Chuban Shunga – Suzuki Harunobu – Young Couple And Peeking Girl – c.1760.

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Description:

Original antique Japanese color woodblock print by Suzuki Harunobu (ca.1725-1770).
Shunga
( Erotic print ). Date: c.1760s. Chuban yoko-e size: 10” x 7 1/5” inches.
Series: “Senrikyu‘. Fine impression (with various gauffrage details), very good color and condition.
Some minor wear and soiling, marks and flaws. Very well preserved print and virtually full size.

“A delightful erotic scene by one of the greatest ukiyo-e masters featuring a young couple making love on a verandah during the evening. In the illuminated room of the house a silhouette of young woman peeking through the holes in the door is visible. A lovely detail is the adolescent girl giving the inexperienced boy a hand. In the background a wooden water basin can be seen.”

“The design has a striking composition with the horizontal line of the fench beautifully counterbalanced with the vertical lines of the verandah that betrays the great craftmanship of Harunobu.”

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p1491  -     -  US$ >  Currency Converter.          Contact Info >

Suzuki Harunobu  c.1760

Shunga - Young Monk And Courtesan.

Shunga Suzuki Harunobu. c 1760  - Young Monk And Courtesan.

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Description:

Antique Japanese color woodblock print by Suzuki Harunobu (1725-1770). Shunga (Erotic print). Date: c.1760s. 
Chuban size: 6" x  9 1/3". Very good impression, good colors and poor condition. Wear and soiling, centerfold, 
several small wormholes, backed. Wonderful gauffrage details to the pillow and blanket in the background.

The young monk's body has been printed in flesh tones using a metallic pigment that has since oxidized, 
creating darkened areas and imbuing the figure with texture (the head).


 p546 -  €2300  -  US$ >  Currency Converter.          Contact Info >

 

Chuban Shunga  Suzuki Harunobu 

Maneemon - c.1768.

Chuban Shunga Harunobu - Maneemon - c.1768.

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Description:

Original antique Japanese color woodblock Harunobu (1725-1770). Shunga (Erotic print). Date: c.1768. 
Fine impression with gauffrage, very good colors and very good to fine condition. Chuban yoko-e size: 8 1/4" x 10 3/4" inches. 
Series: 'Furyu enshoku Maneemon' (The Fashionable Lusty Maneemon). Publisher: Nishimuraya Yohachi. Accompanying texts: Komatsuya Hyakki. No repairs, virtually full size (very slightly trimmed), clean vertical fold-mark, minor soils, marks and flaws. Overall in a fine state of preservation!

'An old man kisses his wife, who is holding a bowl and a tea whisk. Another (young) couple makes love in the adjoining room divided by a mosquito-net and Maneemon (Mannekin) sits at ease between the two couples. The old man points his finger towards the other couple as if to say, ' What they can do, we can do too'. In contrast the enormous penises usually depicted in shunga, here the old man's scrotum is greatly enlarged.

His tools for working on the rice fields are stored under the veranda'. ('Japanese Erotic Prints, shunga by Harunobu & Koryusai ' , Inge Klompmakers).

References:  Kobayashi and Asano (Eds.) (1995), Vol.1, 36. / Klompmakers (2001), 66-7, B7.

This series is one of Harunobu's most famous shunga works, and perhaps one of the best known works in his whole oeuvre ! 
The complete series consist of two sets of twelve prints each in which a miniature man, Maneemon or ' Imitation man', spies on lovers and sometimes imitates them in his own funny but touching way ! It is sometimes suggested that Maneemon was Harunobu himself !

A magnificent design by one of the greatest Ukiyo-e masters !


 

 

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