A Clam Feast on Shinagawa Bay

Color woodblock prints reached full blossom during the Edo period (1615–1868), because the medium played a crucial role in the popular pictorial art known as ukiyo-e, or “pictures of the Floating World.” Ukyio-e drew its subject matter from the urban entertainment life, featuring genre scenes and portraits. Its forms varied from modest and widely disseminated prints to expensive paintings. The prints were usually produced by teamwork, whereby the master artist assumed the key role in design and the selling price.

Hosoda Eishi is known for his tall, slender female figures, the images of geisha (courtesans) who worked in the pleasure districts of Japan’s cities.