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.

Dangerous: the appearance of a contemporary geisha of the Meiji era, No. 28 - A young geisha carefully lifts up her kimono with one hand and leans against a wooden post with the other as she prepares to board a pleasure boat. Moss growing on the wood suggests a slippery surface, and as she is likely wearing tall wooden sandals called geta, she may be unsure of her footing, hence the "danger" of the title. Her hair is elegantly but simply styled with a comb and two pins, and a purse wrapped in tissues is tucked into her obi. Faint embossing on the kimono collar and fabric. An attractive example from the "Aspects of Women series." A lovely print.

Artist - Yoshitoshi (1839 - 1892)

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

Condition - With excellent color and detail. Minor soiling in subject with a few faint creases at corners. Light remnants from previous mounting with one area of thinning, repaired from reverse. Please see photos for details. Nice overall.