A Geisha Seated upon a Shogi in Front of a Tea-house 1753 - 1773

Okumura Masanobu created this delicate woodblock print of a geisha around the early to mid-1700s, during the Edo period in Japan. As a society that was experiencing economic growth and cultural flourishing, the Edo period also reinforced a rigid social hierarchy. Here, the geisha is represented as a figure of entertainment and refinement. This was a time when the floating world, or ukiyo, was celebrated as a space for pleasure, but also existed alongside social constraints. Woodblock prints were affordable, allowing access to idealized versions of beauty, fashion and leisure, thus reinforcing the geisha as a symbol of aspiration and desire. Masanobu's artistic interpretation is significant because it both echoes and nuances the prevailing views of women in Edo society, blending commercial appeal with the subtle emotional complexities inherent in the geisha's role. The print invites us to consider the geisha's lived experiences within the intersections of artistry, commercialism, and the restrictive social structures of the time.