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Kamigata-e :
painted Kabuki advertisements
Dr Gary
Hickey University of Melbourne 2008
Kabuki, the
traditional theater of Japan, is most commonly associated with the
city of Edo (the site of modern-day Tokyo) through the
proliferation of colourful ukiyo ‘Floating World’ images of
actors and courtesans from the Tokugawa period (1600-1868) produced
there. Lesser known, but of significance, are the Kabuki actor
portraits of the Tokugawa period’s other great cities Osaka and
Kyoto. The roots of the Kabuki theatre are found in this area known
as Kamigata. So important was this theatrical form in this region,
especially in Osaka, that virtually all Kamigata-e
(‘Kamigata pictures’), which included print, book illustrations and
painted placards, depicted Kabuki actors.
The style of
Kabuki in Osaka had its own regional flavor with an emphasis on
tragic romances. Unlike Edo where there were schools of actor
portraitists, in Osaka, images of actors were often drawn by
talented amateurs who were also Kabuki fans. The largest production
of images was in the printed form but artists also produced painted
billboards that would have been displayed on the facades of
theatres. The richly coloured palette and stylized representation
of leading actors used in these painted images is indicative of the
vibrant and noisy theatrical world of Kamigata Kabuki. Such a
lively display, as shown in these painted images of the theatre,
would have appealed directly to the passing crowds seeking
entertainment. Although the actors in these paintings are not
identified the Kabuki fans would have recognized them by crests
where they appear on costumes as well as their facial features and
their particular mie, the pose adopted by the actor to give
dramatic emphasis to his portrayal.
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