Cleveland Museum of Art

Takigawa of the Ōgiya from the series A Selection of Eastern Beauties

Date

c. 1798

Medium

color woodblock print

Culture

Japan, Edo period (1615–1868)

Department

Japanese Art

Institution

Cleveland Museum of Art

The courtesan Takigawa worked for the Ōgiya, "House of Fans" brothel, one of the most prestigious in the Yoshiwara. Here, she smokes tobacco, a fashionable trend in 18th-century Edo. Fashion-conscious women in Edo purchased prints of the most famous beauties just as contemporary women buy fashion magazines to learn about the latest styles in make-up and hair. The strands of hair at her temple were printed from thin pieces of wood left in relief when the areas on either side of them were carved away. Takigawa became the most senior courtesan of the Ōgiya following the retirement of Hanaōgi.

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