Beauties and Actors

Torii Kiyotada

Ichikawa Danjūrō II in “Wait a Moment” (Shibaraku)

c. 1715

Woodblock print; ink and hand-applied color (tan-e) on paper, 28.6 × 15.2 cm. The Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York

Striding out to the stage along the runway, the hero flaunts a boldly patterned costume.

• He studied with Kiyonobu, in the Torii line of actor-print designers.
• The museum's date predates his recorded activity, c. 1720–50.
• Fans knew the actor by his family crest, three nested squares, more than by his face.

Image: The Met Open Access · Public domain (Met Open Access)