Ichikawa Danjūrō VI as Arakawa Tarō Takesada 1795

Editor: This woodblock print from 1795 by Tōshūsai Sharaku is called "Ichikawa Danjūrō VI as Arakawa Tarō Takesada." The texture looks interesting; you can almost feel the grain of the wood. What do you notice about the materials and production of this work? Curator: As a materialist, I'm drawn to the socio-economic context in which this print was made. Ukiyo-e like this one were produced for a growing urban class. They were relatively inexpensive and accessible. Consider the labor involved: the artist, the woodblock carvers, and the printers. Editor: So it's a kind of mass-produced art, meant for regular people? Curator: Exactly! These weren't unique, commissioned pieces. They reflect the tastes and consumption patterns of Edo-period Japan. The woodblock printing technique itself, a mechanized reproducibility if you will, democratized art. This print’s caricature, for example, is less about the individual and more about accessible theater types, and therefore, accessible entertainment for the public. Editor: I see, so the way it was made and who it was made for are as important as who it depicts? Curator: Precisely. This is where traditional divisions of "high art" versus "craft" crumble. Think of the materials themselves – wood, ink, paper – transformed through labor and technology into something with social and cultural meaning. What stories do the colors and the composition of the garments tell you about the class that produced the print and the class that could afford to purchase the work? Editor: That makes me see it in a totally different light. Thanks! Curator: Indeed. By considering the process of production and the social context, we gain a much richer understanding of this print’s place in history and how cultural significance evolves in response to materials and accessibility.