Actor Onoe Matsusuke as Tenjin Sugawara Michizane c. 1780s

Curator: Katsukawa Shunkō's print, now at the Harvard Art Museums, features the actor Onoe Matsusuke embodying Tenjin Sugawara Michizane. It’s rendered on paper, about a foot tall. Editor: He looks so forbidding! There’s real tension in the way he grips that fabric, and in his gaze. What are we seeing here, historically? Curator: This is a Kabuki portrait, capturing a specific moment, or perhaps a famous role, which often intersects with political and social commentary of the time. Consider the actor's status, the playwright's intentions, and how the audience might receive such a portrayal. Editor: And consider how the woodblock printing process allows for the mass production and distribution of such images. The materiality of the work itself facilitates the spread of narratives about class and power. Curator: Precisely! The print becomes a vehicle for disseminating idealized or critical perspectives of prominent figures and societal structures. Editor: Seeing it this way makes the print feel less like a simple portrait and more like a complex cultural artifact.