A courtesan holds a pipe beneath a long-tailed rooster's perch

A woman sits before a low lacquer tray bearing a tobacco set, one hand holding a slender pipe, her green under-robe patterned with red diamonds and gold clouds spilling in gathered folds across the floor. A black outer robe with a cream shawl-like collar wraps her shoulders, and a wide bar hairpin crosses her upswept hair. Above her, a long-tailed rooster with vivid red-and-gold plumage perches on a wooden stand, its beak lowered toward her ornaments. The character 松風 (Matsukaze) is inscribed beside the artist's signature and seal at right, against a red ground bordered in black and ochre.

Kitagawa Utamaro (c. 1753–1806) defined the ukiyo-e portrait of women. Working with the publisher Tsutaya Jūzaburō in the 1790s, he introduced the ōkubi-e, or large-head print, which brought the viewer close enough to read a glance or a gesture, and he gave the beauties of the Yoshiwara district individual faces and names. Mica grounds, transparent textiles and fine line work made his prints the most refined of their day. His work is held by the British Museum, the Museum of Fine Arts, Boston and the Metropolitan Museum of Art.

Printed as a museum-grade giclée on Hahnemühle fine art paper using 12-ink archival pigment printing. Available handframed in FSC-certified wood with optional float glass, or unframed. Ships worldwide with free delivery to 30+ countries.