Minneapolis Institute of Art

Sudden Shower at the Mimeguri Shrine

Torii Kiyonaga

Date

c. 1787

Medium

Woodblock print (nishiki-e), ink and color on paper

Department

Asian Art

Institution

Minneapolis Institute of Art

People rush to seek shelter from a sudden shower beneath a gateway at the Inari Shrine in Mimeguri, an area in Edo (present-day Tokyo). One of Torii Kiyonaga’s most famous compositions, this triptych reveals his wit through the inclusion of a vaporous apparition in the clouds above: a group of horned gods dressed as fashionable townsmen lounging and smoking. Traditionally, the Japanese have represented the Thunder God as a muscular demon in a leopard-skin loincloth, who creates thunder by pounding cosmic drums. Here, however, Kiyonaga parodies popular poetry gatherings among Edo sophisticates by showing two demons contemplating a verse written on a long poem slip ( tanzaku ). The scene is undoubtedly a reference to a poem written by Takarai Kikaku (1661–1707) and dedicated to Mimeguri Inari Shrine to pray for rain. Asia

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