Hour of the Rat (12am) - Kitagawa Utamaro
Archival giclée
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Description
A refined woodblock print by Kitagawa Utamaro, depicting two women in a quiet moment from the series The Twelve Hours in Yoshiwara.
This woodblock print belongs to the series The Twelve Hours in Yoshiwara, a collection by Kitagawa Utamaro that documents the daily routines of courtesans within the pleasure district of Edo. The Hour of the Rat, corresponding to midnight, captures a quiet moment of preparation or rest. Utamaro is known for his focus on the female form, often employing elongated proportions and expressive facial features to convey character and mood.
The composition features two figures. One woman stands, draped in a striped kimono with a soft pink sash, while the other kneels, holding up a dark purple garment. The interaction between the two figures is subtle, suggesting a private scene removed from the public gaze of the Yoshiwara district. The artist uses a refined line quality to define the folds of the fabric and the delicate hairstyles of the women. The colour palette is restrained, relying on muted tones of purple, soft green, and pink against a neutral background, which allows the viewer to focus on the posture and gestures of the subjects.
Utamaro was a master of the bijin-ga genre, which translates to pictures of beautiful women. His work often moved beyond simple portraiture, providing a glimpse into the social dynamics and fashion of the period. The print demonstrates his ability to balance decorative elements, such as the patterns on the kimonos, with the naturalistic depiction of human movement. By choosing to depict the late-night hours, the artist invites the viewer to consider the private lives of those who inhabited the pleasure quarters, away from the festivities of the day. This print is a representative example of the technical precision achieved by Edo-period printmakers, where the collaboration between the artist, carver, and printer resulted in a sophisticated final product.
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Each print is produced to order using 12-colour giclée printing on FSC-certified archival paper. Designed in Britain and printed at your nearest production hub to reduce waste and speed up delivery.
Care and materials
Specific Features
Every Solis piece is made to order with archival, gallery-quality materials built to last.
- Museum-grade giclée printing for rich, fade-resistant colour
- Archival matte fine-art paper, FSC-certified
- Multiple sizes and framing options available
- Frames in black, natural wood, dark wood or white
- Framed prints arrive ready to hang
Care & Cleaning
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- Dust gently with a soft, dry cloth
- Avoid prolonged direct sunlight
- Never use liquid cleaners on the print or canvas surface
- Keep in a dry, room-temperature space
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Materials & Sizing
Museum-grade giclée on FSC-certified archival matte paper, with framed and canvas options.
- Paper sizes: A4, A3, A2, A1, A0 and B2 (50×70 cm)
- Canvas: XS (20×30 cm) to Large (60×90 cm)
- Frames: black, natural wood, dark wood or white
Hour of the Rat (12am) - Kitagawa Utamaro
Artist Biography
Kitagawa Utamaro
Almost nothing is certain about his early life. He was born around 1753, possibly in Edo, possibly in Kyoto, possibly in Kawagoe. He began publishing prints in the 1770s under the guidance of the publisher Tsutaya Juzaburo, who recognised what Utamaro could do with a portrait of a woman.
What he could do was unprecedented. He invented the okubi-e format: large head-and-shoulders portraits of individual women, mostly from the Yoshiwara pleasure district, printed in close-up with minimal background. Before Utamaro, bijin-ga (pictures of beautiful women) showed groups of figures in full length. He isolated the face, the tilt of the head, the expression. The prints are psychologically specific in a way that had not existed in Japanese printmaking.
He also published books of insect studies and volumes of shunga (erotica), and he made portraits of ordinary town women, not just courtesans. Ohisa and Okita, two shopgirls who appeared in his Three Beauties of the Present Day, became famous across Edo because of his prints. He turned real people into celebrities, which may be the first documented instance of an artist functioning as a kind of media platform.
Tsutaya Juzaburo died in 1797. Utamaro was reportedly devastated. Some critics feel his work never reached the same level afterward. He produced over two thousand prints in his career.
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