Two women share a private moment behind painted fans

Two women are shown close together against a plain grey ground. The woman behind wears a black kimono patterned with a white cross-hatch grid and a red floral collar, holding a round fan decorated with a shell and pine motif. In front, a woman in an olive kimono with a pale dot pattern holds a slender pick to her lips. Both wear elaborate pinned hairstyles with combs. The artist's signature reads at lower left.

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.