Utagawa kuniyoshi biography template

Utagawa Kuniyoshi (1798-1861)

Utagawa Kuniyoshi (1798-1861), was one of the last great masters of the Japanese woodblock print.

He was born in 1798, the son of a silk-dyer, originally named Yoshizo.

He apparently assisted his father by designing for the business, and quite naturally found his way to the art world.

He originally studied with the artist Kuninao, and some of his work came to the attention of one of the great masters of the Japanese woodblock print, Toyokuni.

Utagawa kuniyoshi biography template pdf

He was officially admitted to Toyokuni's studio in 1811, and became one of his chief pupils. He remained an apprentice until 1814, when he was given the name Kuniyoshi and set out as an independent artist.

Like many others of the Utagawa school, he started out with theatre prints, but his initial lack of success led to several hard years, at one point making a meagre living repairing and selling used tatami (floormats).

A chance encounter with his prosperous fellow pupil Kunisada, to whom he f