Ukiyoe works 1 Goldfish and life in Edo

Goldfish in Ukiyoe "Gingyo-zukushi"[Bonbon]

Animals and creatures that often appear in Kuniyoshi's works. Goldfish(Kingyo) are one such example, and Kingyo Zukushi"is a very popular series that depicts people's daily lives using anthropomorphic goldfish. This work is a comical depiction of a human-like goldfish that reflects Kuniyoshi's free thinking.Bonbon'' is a work depicting a Obon game in which children walk hand in hand while singing the ``Bonbon Song,'' and the world of anthropomorphic goldfish is depicted in detail and in a fun way. The fan held by the goldfish becomes a scooping net, and the willow becomes algae in the water.

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"Ikeno kingyo to neko 池の金魚と猫" Goldfish in the pond and Cat

Kuniyoshi, who presents works in a wide range of genres, also works on paintings of beautiful women. ”Goldfish and Pond Cat'' is a work depicting a leisurely conversation between women in the Edo period. As the title suggests, goldfish are also depicted in the pond, giving us a glimpse of how goldfish have been a familiar part of our lives since the Edo period. The image of a woman holding a cat looking at goldfish swimming in a pond is a depiction typical of Kuniyoshi, who loves living things such as goldfish and cats.

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"Nitaka Kingyo 似たか金魚"　Look a like Goldfish

During the Tenpo Reforms that occurred during the time when Kuniyoshi was active, actor paintings were also subject to a crackdown. So Kuniyoshi drew a caricature where his body was an animal and only his face was an actor. One of the joys of Kuniyoshi's works is the outlandish ideas behind his opposition to society. ”Lookalike Goldfish'' is also a portrait of a real actor. Not only the face but also the goldfish pattern is the actor's family crest, and every detail is expressed as a parody of the actor's painting.