Hari-shigoto – Needlework
1793-1804
Utamaro captures a quiet, intimate moment of a woman focused on her sewing, dressed in a gorgeous blue kimono patterned with white geometric hemp-leaf shapes. She sits beside her black lacquer sewing box, holding a thread taut, with a long pink sash trailing onto the floor next to a pair of discarded spectacles. Those glasses are a brilliant touch of realism, hinting at the eyestrain of detailed needlework! This piece comes from his series 'Mirror of Women's Occupations,' which celebrated the everyday jobs of Edo-period women, proving that domestic life was just as worthy of art as famous courtesans.
- Technique
- Woodblock print
- Material
- Paper
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