January Sekku Festival. by Utagawa

Utagawa

1847-01-01

photo, print, drawing

Library of Congress

Utagawa Kuniyoshi (1797--1861) was a disciple of Utagawa Toyokuni (1769--1825), founder of the Utagawa school. In this work produced in about 1847, Kuniyoshi presents a typical New Year's scene of the Edo period (1600--1867). In the center of the picture is a large kite with the image of Bodhidharma (also called Daruma), a Zen Buddhist sage of fearsome appearance who was often caricatured in Japan. Children are playing with the kite, around which stand three mothers with children. The pair in the middle is on the way to take the first bath of the year. The pair on the right plays battledore and shuttlecock, and the pair on the left