Art Institute of Chicago

The Hole in the Wall

Attributed to Suzuki Harunobu 鈴木 春信

Date

1765

Medium

Color woodblock print; chuban

Culture

Japan

Department

Arts of Asia

Institution

Art Institute of Chicago

This is a calendar print for 1765 (second year of the Meiwa era). The numbers for the short months appear in the pattern of the girl’s robe, and the long months are given in the man’s robe. The design recalls the Hole-in-the-Wall affair from the Tales of Ise , a ninth-century collection of vignettes about the poet Narihira (825–880) and his loves. The book indicates that Narihira visited the empress in secret, entering through a crumbling palace wall, and, when discovered, was sent into exile in northern Japan.

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