Takashima Ohisa Using Two Mirrors to Observe Her Coiffure - Kitagawa Utamaro
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Description
A classic ukiyo-e woodblock print by Kitagawa Utamaro, capturing the beauty Takashima Ohisa in a moment of quiet reflection.
This woodblock print by Kitagawa Utamaro depicts the celebrated beauty Takashima Ohisa, a waitress at the Takashimaya tea house in Edo. Utamaro was a master of the bijin-ga genre, which focused on the portrayal of beautiful women. In this composition, the subject is shown from behind, engaged in the private act of checking her hairstyle using two mirrors. The use of reflection allows the viewer to see her facial features, creating a layered visual experience that was characteristic of Utamaro's innovative approach to portraiture.
The print demonstrates the artist's ability to capture domestic intimacy within the constraints of the ukiyo-e medium. The subject's posture is relaxed, and her kimono is rendered with clean, flowing lines that suggest the weight and texture of the fabric. A bamboo blind hangs in the background, providing a simple geometric contrast to the organic curves of the figure. The inclusion of a small cartouche in the upper left corner, featuring an iris, adds a subtle botanical element to the scene.
Utamaro's work often focused on the psychological state of his subjects, moving away from the rigid stylisation seen in earlier ukiyo-e prints. By placing the subject in a moment of self-reflection, he invites the viewer to observe a quiet, personal ritual. The limited colour palette, typical of the period, relies on soft tones to maintain the focus on the composition and the subject's form. This print remains a fine example of the technical precision and aesthetic sensitivity that defined the late eighteenth-century Japanese print tradition.
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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
Takashima Ohisa Using Two Mirrors to Observe Her Coiffure - 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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