38 Kunisada II Utagawa 1823 – 1880 Courtesan Motomi with a Young Attendant and a Koto beneath Blooming Cherry Blossoms

from the series Shin Yoshiwara, Edo-machi Nichōme (The New Yoshiwara in the Second District of Edo)

An opulently dressed courtesan, Motomi of the Gojōrō house, is shown as a half-length figure holding a koto beneath blooming cherry blossoms against a deep blue sky. Her splendid kimono features patterns of peonies and the mythical Chinese lion karajishi, while her elaborate coiffure is adorned with kanzashi hairpins. She is accompanied by a young attendant (kamuro) carrying a gift box.

Kunisada II, the pupil and adopted son of Kunisada I, assumed his master’s name in 1844 when Kunisada became Toyokuni III. Though technically accomplished, his prints often reveal the mannerist tendencies and fading grandeur of the ukiyo-e tradition on the eve of the Meiji Restoration.