Courtisane Makino uit het Sansho huis - Nagahide

A woodblock print by Nagahide depicting a courtesan from the Sansho house, holding a shamisen and wearing a wide-brimmed hat.

This woodblock print by the artist Nagahide depicts a courtesan named Makino, associated with the Sansho house. The work belongs to the Ukiyo-e tradition, a genre that flourished in Japan during the Edo period. These prints often documented the figures of the pleasure districts, including actors, geisha, and high-ranking courtesans.

The figure is shown in a standing pose, wearing a wide-brimmed hat and holding a shamisen, a three-stringed musical instrument. Her attire is decorated with patterns, rendered through the limited colour palette typical of early nineteenth-century prints. The composition includes a fan-shaped cartouche at the top containing calligraphy, which provides context regarding the subject's identity and her affiliation. The lines are precise and controlled, characteristic of the woodblock carving techniques employed by artists of this period to define form and textile texture.

Nagahide was active in Kamigata, the region encompassing Kyoto and Osaka. Prints from this area often differ from the more widely known Edo-style prints in their subject matter and stylistic approach. The paper shows signs of age, consistent with the material history of Japanese woodblock prints from this era. The print functions as a visual record of the fashion and cultural life of the time, capturing the specific aesthetic of the courtesan class. The use of muted tones, primarily ochre and ink-black, focuses the viewer's attention on the figure's posture and the details of her instrument. This print provides a view into the social hierarchies and artistic output of the Kamigata region during the early nineteenth century.