Cleveland Museum of Art
Portrait of Kinokuniya Bunzaemon
Utagawa ToyokuniLinkedCulture matchlcp-7fb54014fdbe
- Date
- early 1800s
- Medium
- hanging scroll; ink and color on silk
- Culture
- Japan, Edo period (1615–1868)
- Department
- Japanese Art
- Institution
- Cleveland Museum of Art
- Object ID
- 152449
Kinokuniya Bunzaemon was one of Edo’s first millionaire merchants. He made his fortune selling lumber, a lucrative and expanding business in Edo that was often ravaged by fire. Well known for his extravagance, he entertained lavishly and was a generous patron of the theater. He was said once to have set gold and lacquer cups afloat on the Sumida River to amuse people downstream. This painting may be an imaginary portrait, as Kinokuniya Bunzaemon died in 1734—35 years before the artist Toyokuni was born. A patron of the entertainment district and a gourmand, Kinokuniya probably enjoys a New Year’s meal including sushi served on blue-and-white porcelain. The square, tiered box was typically used for serving food for the New Year.
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Provenance & credit
As published by the source institution. Coverage varies — not every institution's open-data feed includes ownership history.
- Credit line
- The Kelvin Smith Collection, given by Mrs. Kelvin Smith
- Provenance
- Kabursgi Kiyokata [1878–1972] | (Mathias Komor, New York, NY, sold to Mr. and Mrs. Kelvin Smith) | ?–1985: The Kelvin Smith Collection, Cleveland, OH, given by Mrs. Kelvin [Eleanor Armstrong] Smith [1899–1998] to the Cleveland Museum of Art | 1985–: The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH
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