Utagawa Yoshitora

Japanese: 歌川芳虎 - うたがわ・よしとら

Year of birth: Year of birth and death unknown. Ukiyo-e artist from the late Edo period to the mid-Meiji period. Commonly known as Nagashima Tatsugoro, Tatsunosuke, or Tatsusaburo. Also known by the pseudonyms Ichimonsai, Mensai, and Kinchoro. A pupil of Utagawa Kuniyoshi, he began painting around the Tenpo period (1830-44). Around 1858, he had a falling out with his teacher and was excommunicated, and in 1849, he was punished for satirizing Tokugawa Ieyasu with his nishiki-e "Dogai Musha Miyo no Wakamochi." He was active in a wide range of fields, including nishiki-e and illustrations for printed books, and rose to the top of the popularity of artists in the early Meiji period. His works are outstanding, including warrior paintings in the style of Kuniyoshi and large-headed actor paintings by Kinshodo, who succeeded the third Toyokuni. He was most active in the fields of Yokohama-e and Kaika-e, which depicted new customs around the time of the Meiji Restoration, and although he produced many works, the quality of his works is poor.

(Junichi Ohkubo)

Source: Asahi Japanese Historical Biography: Asahi Shimbun Publications Inc. About Asahi Japanese Historical Biography

Japanese:

生年：生没年不詳
江戸末期・明治中期の浮世絵師。俗称永島辰五郎,あるいは辰之助,辰三郎。一猛斎,孟斎,錦朝楼などと号した。歌川国芳の門人で,天保(1830～44)ごろから作画を開始。安政5(1858)年ごろ師と不和になり破門され,嘉永2(1849)年の錦絵「道外武者御代の若餅」では徳川家康を風刺したかどで処罰される。錦絵,版本挿絵と幅広く活躍し,明治初年には人気絵師のトップクラスに上る。国芳風の武者絵や,3代豊国を継承した錦昇堂版の役者大首絵が優れている。最も活躍したのは維新前後の目新しい風俗を描いた横浜絵,開化絵の分野で,作品点数も多いが,質的には濫作の弊をまぬがれていない。

(大久保純一)

出典　朝日日本歴史人物事典：（株）朝日新聞出版朝日日本歴史人物事典について　情報

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