Kuniyoshi Project

Eight Selected Flowers from the Garden

(Enchû hassen ka, 園中八撰花)

Publisher: Iba-ya Sensaburô

1845

The title of this series is a parody of Du Fu’s poem The Eight Immortals of the Wine Cup (Inchû hassen ka, 飲中八仙歌). This series of fan prints (uchiwa) is listed as number 219 in Kuniyoshi by Basil William Robinson (Victoria and Albert Museum, London, 1961).

Flower: Bush clover (hagi, はぎ)

Description: Beauty wiping her hands

I am grateful to Robert Pryor for this image.

This is a key block print. It is an impression pulled from the first woodblock made by a carver from the artist’s original drawing. The artist would write instructions for each color on a separate key block print, and the woodblock for each color was cut using one of these as a guide. Registration marks (kento) are characteristically found on Japanese key block prints. Kento are cut in each woodblock, so that the paper can be properly aligned on each woodblock during printing. A kento is visible in this print’s right lower corner. In addition to being a guide for carving the color woodblocks, the key block was also used to apply black ink (usually) in the printing process.