The Actor Segawa Kikunojo III, Possibly as the Courtesan Kojoro of Hakata, in the Play Chiyo no Hajime Ondo no Seto (Beginnings of Eternity: The Ondo Straits in the Seto Inland Sea) (?), Performed at the Kiri Theater from the Twenty-seventh Day of the Seventh Month, 1785 c. 1785

This woodblock print by Katsukawa Shunko captures the actor Segawa Kikunojo III, likely as a courtesan, in a play performed in 1785. The image creates meaning through visual codes tied to the floating world culture of Edo-period Japan. The courtesan's elaborate kimono, hairstyle, and makeup signal her profession and status. It is important to remember that, in Japan, the theater was a major institution and a space in which to perform social roles. Though women were banned from performing, male actors known as onnagata specialized in female roles. The image walks the line between conservative and progressive: it acknowledges the strict social hierarchies of the time, but it also revels in the fluid nature of gender identity. Further understanding of this artwork is gained through research into the history of Kabuki theater and the social lives of courtesans. Art is contingent on its social and institutional context, and historical investigation is essential to interpreting its meaning.