7022 - Ukiyo-e color woodblock print, Katsukawa Shunsen (1762–1830), elegant Japanese beauty with a closed parasol, Japan

Ukiyo-e color woodblock print, Katsukawa Shunsen (1762–1830), elegant Japanese beauty with a closed parasol, Japan An expressive, portrait-oriented Japanese woodblock print after Katsukawa Shunsen (1762–1830), a prominent artist of the Japanese Ukiyo-e tradition, depicting an elegantly dressed young woman in traditional Japanese attire. The graceful female figure is depicted in a long, dark-blue kimono featuring finely detailed circular floral medallions. Beneath it is a light-colored garment adorned with geometric and stylized plant motifs. Her artfully pinned-up hairstyle and harmoniously coordinated clothing emphasize the subject’s elegant appearance. In her hands, the young woman holds a closed Japanese paper parasol, whose long, fan-like folds run diagonally across her body. The slight tilt of her head to the side and her reserved facial expression lend the composition a special sense of calm and grace. The depiction follows the tradition of Japanese bijin-ga, or “pictures of beautiful women,” a significant theme in ukiyo-e art. Characteristic features include the finely contoured facial features, the decorative patterns on the garments, and the elegant lines. At the lower left edge of the image is a vertical Japanese artist’s signature, legible as “Katsukawa Shunsen ga,” meaning “drawn by Katsukawa Shunsen,” as well as a red seal. The elongated composition in the traditional Japanese hanging format emphasizes the figure’s slender silhouette and lends the work a particularly decorative effect. • Artist: Katsukawa Shunsen (1762–1830)\ • Origin: Japan\ • Technique: Color woodblock print on paper, ukiyo-e\ • Subject: Elegant Japanese beauty with a closed parasol\ • Style: Bijin-ga, traditional Japanese depiction of beautiful women\ • Period of the original: Late Edo period\ • Signature: Japanese characters in the lower left corner, “Katsukawa Shunsen ga”\ • Seal: Red Japanese seal below the signature\ • Format: Vertical composition in the tradition of Japanese hanging scrolls\ • Framing: Black wooden frame Dimensions: approx. 81 × 31.5 cm with frame