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[[Image:SharakuTwoActors.jpg|thumb|right|200px|The [[Kabuki]] actors [[Bando Zenji|Bandô Zenji]] (on the left, in the role of Onisadobo) and [[Sawamura Yodogoro II|Sawamura Yodogorô II]] (on the right, as Kawatsura Hogen), in the play ''[[Yoshitsune Senbon Zakura]]'' ("Yoshitsune and the Thousand Cherry-Trees"); 1794/5.]]
*''Active: [[1794]]/5-[[1795]]/2''
*''Active: [[1794]]/5-[[1795]]/2''
*''Japanese'': 東洲斎 写楽 ''(Toushuusai Sharaku)''
*''Japanese'': 東洲斎 写楽 ''(Toushuusai Sharaku)''
Sharaku is one of the most mysterious ''[[ukiyo-e]]'' artists. He was active for only ten months, between 1794 and 1795, producing a number of designs, of which roughly 160 are extant today. His designs are bold, reflecting a very individual style, which has been much praised and lauded, but very little is known of his life or background.
Sharaku is one of the most mysterious ''[[ukiyo-e]]'' artists. He was active for only ten months, between 1794 and 1795, producing a number of designs, of which roughly 160 are extant today. His designs are bold, reflecting a very individual style, which has been much praised and lauded, but very little is known of his life or background.
Some sources indicate he was a [[Noh]] actor in the service of the ''daimyô'' of [[Awa province]]. He had a relationship with the publisher [[Tsutaya Juzaburo|Tsutaya Jûzaburô]], who published all of Sharaku's work.
Some sources indicate he was a [[Noh]] actor in the service of the ''daimyô'' of [[Awa province]], by the name of Saitô Jûrôbei. Scholars have debated his identity, some asserting that "Sharaku" was simply a pseudonym for another, more well-known, artist such as [[Hokusai]]<ref>Tanaka, Hidemichi. "Sharaku is Hokusai: On Warrior Prints and Shunro's (Hokusai's) Actor Prints." ''Artibus et Historiae'' 20:39 (1999).</ref>, though others have argued against these claims. Sharaku had, in any case, a relationship with the publisher [[Tsutaya Juzaburo|Tsutaya Jûzaburô]], who published all of his work.
Scholars have debated his identity, some asserting that "Sharaku" was simply a pseudonym for another, more well-known, artist such as [[Hokusai]], though others have argued against these claims.
His style shows some influence from that of [[Katsukawa Shunsho|Katsukawa Shunshô]], though it is also boldly unique. Sharaku builds upon the trends towards realism prevalent at the time, and Shunshô's introduction of individualized, differentiated faces, taking these both to the extreme, to create [[yakusha-e|actor portraits]] both quite individualized, and hyper-realistic to the point of caricature.
His style shows some influence from that of [[Katsukawa Shunsho|Katsukawa Shunshô]], though it is also boldly unique. Sharaku builds upon the trends towards realism prevalent at the time, and Shunshô's introduction of individualized, differentiated faces, taking these both to the extreme, to create [[yakusha-e|actor portraits]] both quite individualized, and hyper-realistic to the point of caricature.
==References==
==References==
*Lane, Richard. ''Images from the Floating World''. New York: Konecky & Konecky, 1978. pp122-127.
*Lane, Richard. ''Images from the Floating World''. New York: Konecky & Konecky, 1978. pp122-127.
<references/>
[[Category:Edo Period]]
[[Category:Edo Period]]
[[Category:Artists and Artisans]]
[[Category:Artists and Artisans]]