Yoshitoshi's Thirty-two Aspects of Women - Yoshitoshi's finest series of bijin-ga or pictures of beautiful women, "Thirty-two Aspects of Women" features portraits of beauties in a lighthearted reference to the thirty-two notable features of Buddha. The women depicted come from all social classes, representing beauties from the late 18th century through Yoshitoshi's own time.

Each design captures a woman in a scene from daily life, realistically and sensitively portrayed as individuals rather than idealized figures. Elegant fabrics are beautifully rendered, and hairstyles and facial features are drawn with the most delicate of lines. The series was beautifully printed using deluxe techniques, such as soft bokashi shading, embossing, and burnishing, creating some of the finest prints of the Meiji era.

"Thirty-two Aspects" proved popular with the public when first published, and has been appreciated by viewers and collectors ever since. Designs in this fantastic series are some of the most highly sought after woodblocks of the Meiji era, and are certainly considered masterworks of Yoshitoshi's career.

Chilly: the appearance of a concubine of the Bunka era, No. 7 - This beautiful young girl is in the mistress of a wealthy patron. She is beautifully attired in a warmly lined, winter kimono and is washing her hands under an ornate bronze faucet shaped like a dragon. Such faucets were most often found in temple courtyards, so what she is doing here late at night in such a beautiful kimono is unclear. She bites a packet of tissues between her teeth, a gesture that hints at the erotic. A beautiful design from the series with delicate embossing on the edges of the tissues. A classic subject.

Artist - Yoshitoshi (1839 - 1892)

Image Size - 14" x 9 1/4" + margins

Condition - With excellent color and detail. Light spotting in subject and backed with thin paper. Please see photos for details. Nice overall.