Portland Community College | Portland, Oregon Portland Community College

Poppin by Kitagawa Utamaro

  • Title: Poppin
  • Artist: Kitagawa Utamaro
  • Medium: Woodcut
  • Size: 14.5"h x 9.5"w
  • Donor: Gift
  • Campus: Rock Creek
  • Location: B7/1 TLC

Kitagawa Utamaro (1753-1806) is among the most renowned artists working in the Edo period in Japan. He is known for his interest in the private lives of women, including the beautiful geishas and courtesans of Tokyo's pleasure districts. Utamaro specialized in polychrome woodblock prints, which require an individual carved wood block for every color—often as many as 20 in all.