The Courtesan Yosooi

Catalog note / 解説

<b>Object Type</b><br>Japanese woodblock prints were commercial productions made for popular consumption. They were made by artists, block cutters and printers working independently to the instructions of specialist publishers. Pictures of beautiful women served as guides to and souvenirs of the faces and changing hair- and dress-styles of the women who worked in the pleasure quarters of Edo (modern Tokyo). The sophistication of the block-carving and printing techniques used in this print is reflected in the depiction of the see-through fan and the translucent horn hair comb.<br><br><b>Places</b><br>The main pleasure quarter in Edo was the Yoshiwara. It was a separate district with its own…