Accession Number
2008/2.424.1

Title
First Snowfall on the Lovers' Journey to His Hometown: Kataoka Gadō II as Kameya Chūbei

Artist(s)
Utagawa Kunisada

Artist Nationality
Japanese (culture or style)

Object Creation Date
1854

Medium & Support
woodblock print on paper

Dimensions
15 7/8 in x 21 1/4 in (40.32 cm x 53.98 cm);15 7/8 in x 21 1/4 in (40.32 cm x 53.98 cm)

Credit Line
Gift of Ruth W. and Clarence J. Boldt, Jr.

Subject matter
The Lovers’ Journey stories are based off of the puppy-play Meido no hikyaku, known as Courier for Hell, by Chikamatsu Monzaemon. It is the story of the lovers Chūbei, a courier, and Umekawa, a yūjo from the Shinmachi entertainment district. Chūbei uses his customers’ money to pay off Umekawa’s debt, and the two run away to his home town to escape punishment.  There they die in the mountains. Often, the kabuki play took on a different scenery and title depending on the season in which it was performed.

Actor Kataoka Gadō II, who plays the lover Chūbei, was born into the Ichikawa family of kabuki actors in 1810. He was active in kabuki from 1831 until his death in 1863. He started acting in Osaka’s children’s theater as a child and moved frequently between Osaka and Edo (present-day Tokyo). He was known for his roles in jidaimono (period plays) as well as sewamono (contemporary plays). He specialized in a wide variety of role types, including elderly, tachiyaku (lead protagonist), villain, and onnagata (“female role” or “female form”). He was also noted for his proficiency at budōgoto (martial arts). He inherited the name Kataoka Nizaemon VIII in 1857.

Physical Description
A man stands hunched over with one hand drawn up to his chest. He holds onto a screen with his right hand. His head is covered by a blue cloth, and he wears several layers of robes, including a striped blue and brown robe, lighter blue sash, and a patterned coat with yellow crests. Behind him is a small window.

This is the left panel of a diptych (with 2008/2.424.2).

Inscriptions: Kameya Chūbei; Yushima yo (Publisher's seal); aratame, tora 9; (Censor's seal); Toyokuni ga (Artist's signature)

Primary Object Classification
Print

Collection Area
Asian

Rights
If you are interested in using an image for a publication, please visit http://umma.umich.edu/request-image for more information and to fill out the online Image Rights and Reproductions Request Form. Keywords
gates
interior spaces (spaces by location)
kimonos
men (male humans)
theater (discipline)