Man in Blue Kimono with Yellow Umbrella... 

Curator: This is a woodblock print by Utagawa Kuniyoshi, titled "Man in Blue Kimono with Yellow Umbrella..." The Harvard Art Museums hold this particular impression. Editor: There's a vulnerability to this figure. His bare feet and distracted gaze, combined with the rain, suggest a kind of forced exposure. Curator: Indeed. Kuniyoshi, active during the late Edo period, often depicted kabuki actors, and this print seems to capture that theatrical intensity. His appearance, with the blue makeup, is actually part of the costume of a Kabuki actor, Ichikawa Ebizo. Editor: The umbrella, usually a symbol of protection, is furled. Instead, it almost feels like a prop, a visual cue to a story we don't fully know. Curator: The plaid kimono, while striking, also signifies a shift in fashion and perhaps even social codes during that era, moving away from traditional norms. He seems to be trying to shield himself from the downpour. Editor: It's a compelling image—the tension between the man's internal state and the external world so vividly portrayed through these visual symbols. It's as if we've caught him in a moment of profound self-reflection. Curator: Kuniyoshi's ability to capture the nuances of human emotion within a rapidly changing society is why he remains so relevant.