From an untitled series of twenty-two actor portraits
Nakamura Shikan IV as Keyamura Rokusuke in the Play Vendetta at Hikosan, 1873 - Fantastic okubi-e or large head kabuki portrait of Nakamura Shikan IV as Keyamura Rokusuke in the play "Vendetta at Hikosan" (Katakiuchi chikai no Hikosan). A former martial arts student, Rokusuke became a farmer after his master was murdered. He had taken in a boy who was found at the scene of the crime, unaware that the child was his master's grandson, hanging the child's kimono outside his house in hopes that his family would see it and be reunited with the boy. One day, a woman disguised as a traveling nun saw the robe, and immediately tried to kill Rokusuke. She was actually Osono, the daughter of his master, who mistakenly believed that Rokusuke had killed her father because he had his grandson's kimono. The line work of the hair is extremely fine, with wonderful handling of the ear seen through the hair. Here, Rokusuke frowns angrily, his lips tightly pressed together as he clutches a brown cloth. The figure's blue kimono fills the page against a red background and a green border with white motifs. A terrific kabuki design and one of Kunichika's best large head portraits.
Artist - Kunichika (1835 - 1900)
Image Size - 14" x 9 1/2" + margins as shown
Condition - This print with nice color and detail as shown. A few tiny spots, a couple creases at edges and faint stains. Please see photos for details.
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