Two Men Wearing Green Coats, also Straw Hats with Brown Bows 1786 - 1868

Yashima Gakutei created this diptych, “Two Men Wearing Green Coats, also Straw Hats with Brown Bows,” using woodblock print, a popular medium in Japan from the 17th through 19th centuries. Gakutei was a pupil of Hokusai, and like his teacher, Gakutei often explored the floating world, or ukiyo-e. Here, we see two pairs of men in elaborate patterned coats and distinctive straw hats as they enact what seems like a playful dance or game. These figures are pressed into a shallow pictorial space, their bodies angled towards one another which creates both a sense of visual tension, but also an undeniably light mood. The figures in the image obscure their faces with their hats, flattening the male form, and playing with gender presentation. Are they friends? Lovers? It is impossible to say, but it is certain that Gakutei makes visible a world that is both intimate, and performative.