Kitao Shigemasa
Japanese, 1739-1830
Women's Bathhouse and Laundry
INV-3655
Kitao Shigemasa
Japanese, 1739-1830Mid-18th to early 19th century
Women's Bathhouse and Laundry
Kitao Shigemasa Japanese, 1739-1830 →Japanese (culture or style)paintingasian art
Date
Mid-18th to early 19th century
Medium
Ink and colors on paper
Dimensions
104.6 × 188.7 cm (41 3/16 × 74 5/16 in.)
Museum
Art Institute of Chicago
Location
Chicago, IL
Credit
Margaret Gentles Endowment
In Japan during the Edo period (1615–1868), bathing was considered a communal activity, and bathhouses were popular places to socialize. The women in this painting—most likely courtesans—are performing a variety of tasks in addition to bathing, such as doing laundry and combing one another’s hair. Two women near the back of the scene are reading a book; one of them holds her hand to her face as if to express her shock at the content, or perhaps to whisper in the other’s ear.
Also notable
Works in the same vein
Komurasaki of the Miuraya and Shirai Gompachi (Miuraya Komurasaki, Shirai Gompachi)
Kitagawa Utamaro 喜多川 歌麿 Japanese, c.1753-1806
Hamamatsu, from the series "Fifty-three Stations of the Tokaido (Tokaido gojusan tsugi)," also known as the Tokaido with Poem (Kyoka iri Tokaido)
Utagawa Hiroshige 歌川 広重 Japanese, 1797-1858
Mitsuke: Ferries Crossing the Tenryu River (Mitsuke, Tenryugawa funawatashi), from the series "Fifty-three Stations of the Tokaido (Tokaido gojusan tsugi)," also known as the Tokaido with Poem (Kyoka iri Tokaido)
Utagawa Hiroshige 歌川 広重 Japanese, 1797-1858
