WOMEN IN BLACK AND YELLOW STRIPED KIMONO 

Editor: So, this woodblock print, "Women in Black and Yellow Striped Kimono" by Katsukawa Shun'ei, has such interesting, precise lines. How do you interpret the materiality of this print and its production within its social context? Curator: Think about the labor involved. Each line, each block, painstakingly carved. The materiality speaks to a system of production. How were these prints circulated and consumed? Did the accessibility of these prints democratize art, or did it create new hierarchies of taste and value? Editor: That's a really interesting point about democratization versus new hierarchies. I never considered the socioeconomic impact of the printing process itself. Curator: Exactly! Consider also the pigments. Where did they come from? Who had access to them? These material choices reveal much about the social fabric of the time. Editor: That definitely provides an interesting new perspective on the artwork. Curator: Yes, art is so much more than the image. It’s the process, the labor, the materials, and the social context.