Japanese school: Two chirimen-e (chirimengami-e) triptychs, Utagawa Kunisada (1786-1865) and Utagawa Kunisada II (1823-1880), Meiji, 19th/20th C.

拍品描述

Japanese school: Two chirimen-e (chirimengami-e) triptychs, Utagawa Kunisada (1786-1865) and Utagawa Kunisada II (1823-1880), Meiji, 19th/20th C. Ca. 26,5 x 19 cm (3x) Ca. 25,5 x 17,5 cm (3x) The smallest triptych showing prince Genji observing the abalone divers on the beach, the largest triptych with ladies relaxing in a palace interior. Chirimengami-e ('compressed thread paper prints': 縮緬紙) were crinkled paper prints or 'crepe' prints (sometimes referred to as 'crepon'). Ukiyo-e crepe prints were produced at least as early as 1800 in Edo, and throughout the nineteenth century they were used on occasion for alternate states of some ukiyo-e designs. The compression technique resulted in a highly textured surface and noticeably smaller paper sizes, which offered a different aesthetic from the image printed in standard editions. Despite the extra effort involved in making these prints, they were, it seems, more a novelty than an attempt at serious refinement of the printed image. Over the course of the nineteenth century, there were different methods and devices used in making a chirimengami-e, such as wooden presses, paper molds, wood molds, and even walking upon prints rolled inside thick paper blankets. The crinkling effect ranged from fairly fine to rather coarse, with differing 'pitch angles' of the paper wrinkles. Chirimengami-e were very uncommon before 1840; most surviving specimens date from the 1840s to the 1910s, with a spike in productivity during the 1850s. The effect of the wrinkled surface varied according to the light source. When viewed in low-level illumination (e.g., candlelight or kerosene lamp), the visual impact could be dramatic.

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