Actor Iwai Hanshirō V as Sukeroku
Utagawa Toyokuni
1816
- Medium
- Woodblock print (nishiki-e), ink and color on paper
- Dimensions
- 8 9/16 × 10 13/16 in. (21.8 × 27.5 cm) (image, sheet, uchiwa-e)
- Genre
Tags
Japan
About
Fans with depictions of actors were popular among devotees of the Kabuki theater. People expressed their enthusiasm for particular actors by purchasing fans bearing their images. This fan bears an image of the actor Iwai Hanshirø V (1776-1847). Hanshirø was a very popular onnagata (female impersonator), but occasionally played the roles of young handsome men. Here he plays Sukeroku, a well known gallant. By depicting the umbrella's rib radiating outward behind the actor's head, Toyokuni effectively accentuated Hanshiro's handsome face.
