One Hundred Beauties of the Yoshiwara Poems by the Gokawa Murasaki Club (Gokawa Murasaki ren hyaku ban no uchi), with poems by Yusuiro Kawafune and an associate c. 1825 - 1830

Curator: Immediately, I feel the weight of tradition, almost a performance. Editor: Indeed. This is Utagawa Kunisada's "One Hundred Beauties of the Yoshiwara Poems by the Gokawa Murasaki Club," now residing at Harvard Art Museums. Look closely at the dense patterning. Curator: Yes, it's dizzying! The labor in creating those kimono patterns... and the poems! Who were these women, really? Were they crafting the poems themselves? Editor: Good questions. The print, using woodblock techniques, was a collaborative effort, highlighting the fusion of artistic and literary expression, tied to a pleasure district. Curator: It feels almost like a stage set, doesn't it? Every element carefully positioned to convey beauty and perhaps a touch of melancholy. Editor: Precisely. The production is complex. Curator: A fleeting glimpse into a very particular world. Editor: One where art, craft and social life become inextricably intertwined.