Woman Playing on the Shamisen 1815

"Woman Playing on the Shamisen" is an 1815 woodblock print by the Japanese artist Kubo Shunman (1757-1820). The print features a woman in traditional Japanese clothing seated and playing a shamisen, a three-stringed musical instrument. The print is a classic example of ukiyo-e, a genre of Japanese art that flourished in the Edo period. Shunman’s print is characterized by its detailed depiction of the woman and the shamisen. The artwork, now housed in the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York, demonstrates Shunman's mastery of the art form and showcases the cultural significance of music in Japanese society.