Katsukawa shunsho biography
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By the 1760s, Shunshō had shifted his focus to ukiyo-e, establishing himself as a leading designer of yakusha-e (actor prints) and bijin-ga (images of beautiful women). Shunsho was the founder of the realistic Katsukawa school, and thereby gave a new impulse to its style. Unlike the static elegance of earlier ukiyo-e, Shunshō's prints conveyed movement, a quality enhanced by his precise, almost calligraphic use of the kento registration marks to align colors.
Technically, Shunshō was among the first to exploit the potential of nishiki-e, collaborating with skilled carvers and printers to achieve subtle gradations in skin tones and textiles.
While we don’t possess any of his actor portraits in our collection, we have some done by later artists who show the evolution of the style (see The Utagawa School).
Katsukawa Shunshō
Biography
Katsukawa Shunshō (勝川 春章, c.
Katsukawa Shunshō “Two Standing Sumo Wrestlers, Kashiwado Kandayū and Inagawa Masaemon in Ceremonial Wear(Exhibited in the 1st term: Ishiguro Collection)
Katsukawa Shunshō “Smiling Competiton of Ebisu (god of wealth) and a Woman”(Exhibited in the 2nd term)
Katsukawa Shunshō “Ushiwakamaru and Benkei at Gojō Ōhashi Bridge” (Exhibited in the 1st term)
3．Hokusai’s Master and Leader of the Katsukawa School of Art
The charismatic Shunsho attracted many disciples.These luxury editions, like Poem by Ōta Nampo (1780s), showcase his mastery of intricate detail and metallic pigments, catering to elite patrons while pushing the boundaries of printmaking as a refined art form.
Influence and legacy
Shunshō's impact on ukiyo-e was immediate and enduring. His dynamic actor portraits set a standard for the Katsukawa school, influencing successors like Shunkō and, indirectly, the later works of Toshusai Sharaku.
In the upper right side is the image of the Star Festival, and the bottom left is the market for the bon festival. Katsukawa Shunko, Shunsho’s foremost pupil, faithfully followed his artistic style. The famous ukiyo-e artist, Katsushika Hokusai was also one of Shunsho’s pupils, and took upon the name, Katsukawa Shunrō in his younger days.
After much experience afterwards, Hokusai creates his series of masterpieces, such as the “Thirty-six Views of Mt. Fuji,” at over 70 years old. This work can be said to be the masterpieces of Shunsho’s early works on bijin-gas.
1. In that sense, it can be said that much of the popularity of Kabuki art throughout the late Edo period can be attributed to Shunsho’s success.
Shunsho’s method of portraying of kabuki actors affected the style of ukiyo-e artists of later generations such as Tōshūsai Sharaku and Utagawa Toyokuni. On the right side of the picture depicting the Bon Festival, a flower-seller boy is talking to two women. 1770) exemplify his ability to capture the intensity of Kabuki performance through exaggerated facial expressions and dynamic poses.
In this exhibition, we will display masterpieces of wood-block prints by Shunshō, as well as introduce works of ukiyo-e artists such as Hokusai and Sharaku who received the influence of Shunshō. Hence, without Shunshō, Hokusai and Sharaku could not be appeared. Like Bunchō, he attached great importance to the depiction of facial expression and character, so that the public recognise the actor without reading the accompanying inscription.
His career spanned the transition from hand-colored benizuri-e (pink prints) to the nascent nishiki-e (brocade prints), placing him at the forefront of technical innovation in printmaking.
Shunshō's exact birth and death dates remain debated—some records suggest 1726–1792, while others propose 1726–1793—but his prolific output between the 1760s and early 1790s is well-documented.
Katsukawa Shunshō “Kabuki Actors, Ichikawa DanjūｒōⅤ as Sakata no Kintoki and Segawa KikunojōⅢas Kumo no sei Disguised as Maiko, Tsumagiku” (Exhibited in the 1st term)
Katsukawa Shunkō ”Kabuki Actor, Ichikawa MonnosukeⅡ as Soga no Gorō”(Exhibited in the 1st term)
Tōshūsai Sharaku “Kabuki Actor, Ichikawa EbizōⅠ as Takemura Sadanoshin”(Exhibited in the 2nd term)
2．Endless Challenge –Sumo-e (pictures of sumo wrestlers) ・Bijin-ga (pictures of beautiful women)・Musha-e (warrior picture)
Shunsho’s career as an artist started late, and is estimated to have begun when he was around forty years old.Some of Shunshō’s successful disciples were Katsukawa Shunkō, Katsukawa Shun’ei, Katsukawa Shunchō.
His dual practice in prints and paintings also allowed for cross-pollination: the ink washes in his nikuhitsu-ga often mirrored the tonal modulations of his woodblock designs.
A lesser-discussed aspect of Shunshō's work is his engagement with surimono—privately commissioned prints for poetry circles.