Ichikawa Yaozo II as Goi no Sho Munesada: Autumn Poetry by Ippitsusai Buncho | 一筆斎文調 五井庄宗貞

Ippitsusai Buncho (一筆斎文調) was, together with Katsukawa Shunsho, the pioneer of realistic actor portraiture in ukiyo-e. This print from the eleventh month of Meiwa 8, 1771, shows the actor Ichikawa Yaozo II, one of the stars of the Nakamura Theater in Edo, in the role of Goi no Sho Munesada from the play Kunino Hana Ono no Itsu Moji.

The role of Munesada is modeled on the Heian court poet Yoshimine no Munesada, who would later take the Buddhist name Henjo and be counted among the Six Poetic Immortals, and the play unfolds around the legendary poetess Ono no Komachi. Museums in Chicago and Boston hold impressions of the design, which is the companion piece to a portrait of Yamashita Yaozo as Ono no Komachi.

The scene is pure autumn poetry. Munesada carries a maple branch over his shoulder, a letter box hanging from its tip, while a deer with fine antlers stands close beside him. The quiet, elegant atmosphere evokes the autumn landscapes of Nara and the Ogura Mountains that belong to the world of waka verse rather than the raucous playhouse.

Even so, the actor's likeness is unmistakable. Buncho captures Yaozo II's straight nose and sharp, cool eyes with the slim, refined linework that made him famous. The signature Ippitsusai Buncho ga and his seal in the lower left corner mark a portrait that turned an actor print into both a likeness and a scene of courtly beauty.