Life & work of Japanese artist - Hosoda Eishi.

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Life & Work of Japanese Artist - Hosoda Eishi

GLORIA KWAN

972894240

EAS342 H1S Art and Religious Experience in Japan

Prof. D. Waterhouse

February 26, 2001

The Japanese art form of woodblock printing, Ukiyo-e, is the most universally known form of Japanese art. It originated in the mid-seventeenth century and lasted through the mid-nineteenth century. This time period is described as the Edo Period. Hosoda Eishi was one of the artists in Ukiyo-e School. He has done pieces in both printing and woodblock printing. To understand and gain respect for the art of Hosoda Eishi, we need to talk about Ukiyo-e. In essence, Ukiyo-e reveals much of the rich history of Japan. This paper will first talk about the background of Hosoda Eishi, then an overview of Ukiyo-e and the works of Eishi will be covered.

Eishi (Chobunsai) Hosoda

Eishi Hosoda, also known as Chobunsai, was born in 1756 as the son of a noted Samurai family. He was the eldest son and his future was assured in the form of an annual stipend from the shogun (Evan 1975). He was appointed to a high rank at the court. He first studied Kano and served as an official painter to the shogun for several years. Then, around the age of thirty, Eishi gave up his heritage and turned to the plebeian Ukiyo-e prints that had been his first love for some years. It was said that for the tolerance of his family he was allowed to make this drastic step down into the masses without complete ostracism or even direct government interference (Evan 1975). Indeed, he was even allowed to retain his art name Eishi ("He Glorifies") which had been bestowed on him by the shogun himself.

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Eishi had been a senior apprentice of Eisen Kano before he followed Bunryusai to learn Ukiyo-e. Trained in the Tori-style, he produced highly praised works. His favorite subjects were “Bijin” which means beautiful women. Moreover, he developed an interest in painting prostitutes, and "A Beauty in the Snow" was one of his mature pieces. He also produced some prints with landscape and historic subjects.

Unlike most of the ukiyo-e artists, who were typically born into the merchant class, Eishi was born into a noted samurai family. Eishi's early prints date from the period of Kiyonaga's dominance, yet already reveal ...

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