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- drama, his colours are harmonious and delicate. However, Sharaku�s style was con�sidered too idiosyncratic and experimental, too frank and perhaps too realistic for his age. As a result, the public rejected his work, and his true genius was only recognized much later. Because he did such a limited amount of work, Sharaku�s prints are extremely rare and now fetch some of the highest prices at auctions of ukiyo-e prints.
Utamaro and Sharaku both worked in the Kansei era (1789-1801), which produced some of the finest ukiyo-e prints despite stringent government censorship. At that time, even the mildest satire or criticism of the government was strictly prohibited. Before any print could be offered for sale, it had to have an official stamp of approval which marked it as kiwame or �inspected.�
In the late eighteenth and early nineteenth centuries, some of the more capable artists concentrated on the genre known as bijin-ga (pictures of beautiful women). These included Eishi (1756-1829), Choki (active 1785-1805), and a little later Eizan (1787-1867) and Eisen (1790-1848). Their prints often mirrored the changing fashions in clothing and hair styles.
Eishi [14] was trained in the Kano school of painting. He was of samurai origin and because of his aristocratic background, upper class patrons took an interest in his elegant prints of tall stately women. One of his best pupils, Eisho (active 1790�s) [18], also special�ized in full-head portraits of beautiful women usually courtesans.
Choki [15] was less well-known than most of his contemporaries, although he produced some exquisite female studies which appear to have been influenced by Utamaro�s grace and Sharaku�s boldness. Choki�s colour combinations usually yellow, gray, violet, blue and black are unusual.
Eizan [17] and Eisen [16] both flourished on the basis of their bijin-ga prints, which often reflected the decadent fashions and changing hair styles of the time. Eizan�s bijin-ga prints were reminiscent of Utamaro�s work. Although Eisen�s bijin-ga prints also reflected Utamaro�s influence, they were quite different from those of Eizan in both colour and design. Eisen also produced some attractive landscape prints.
ses �l�ves les plus dou�s l�artiste gaucher Shumman (1757-1820) [13], dont les estampes sont particuli�rement d�licates du point de vue du dessin et de la couleur, le romancier Kitao Masanobu, illustrateur de ses propres oeuvres, et Kitao Masayoshi, lui aussi illustra�teur de livres.
C�est � Kiyonaga (1752-1815) [7] que revient le m�rite d�avoir inaugur� l��ge d�or de l'ukiyo-e Il a domin� les ann�es 1780, et on estime � l�heure actuelle que c��tait un des plus distingu�s des grands ma�tres de l�ukiyo-e. Le dessin et la couleur de ses estampes sont ex�cut�s � la perfection, et ses jolies femmes minces et coquettes semblent avoir une d�marche �l�gante et majestueuse. Par surcro�t, Kiyonaga �tait un des premiers � utiliser le format triptyque (trois estampes ne formant qu�une seule image) et le format pentaptyque (cinq estampes). Son style a influenc� la plupart de ses contemporains, y compris des sommit�s telles que Shuncho (actif ann�es 1770-1790), Shunzan (actif 1780-1790), Utamaro (1753-1806) etToyokuni (1769-1825).
Puisqu�ils n��taient ni innovateurs ni prolifiques, Shuncho et Shunzan �taient tous les deux des artistes d�importance secondaire. Utamaro [8], cependant, �tait tr�s populaire et incroyable�ment innovateur. Il a �lev� l�art de la gravure � de nouvelles hauteurs et aujourd�hui, c�est lui l�artiste ukiyo-e le plus c�l�bre au Japon. Au temps de sa jeunesse, Utamaro a v�cu � Tokyo, pr�s du Yoshiwara; il �tait fascin� par les jolies femmes �l�gamment habill�es du quartier. Malheureusement, il a men� une vie de d�bauche; il a �t� incarc�r� en 1804 pour avoir r�alis� une estampe diffamatoire. Il se peut que ce bref emprisonnement ait entra�n� sa mort pr�matur�e en 1806, � l��ge de 53 ans.
Ses portraits d�licats de femmes sophistiqu�es captent l�essence m�me des go�ts et des modes de l��poque Edo. Il avait un sens puissant du dessin et ses estampes, riche�ment grav�es, �tablissent des normes tr�s �lev�es d�excellence artistique et technique. Les coiffures des courtisanes dessin�es dans les menus d�tails par Utamaro sont vraiment exquises. Ses portraits en demi-pied et ses grands portraits en plan rapproch� comptent tous deux parmi ses innovations les plus importantes, et on dit que c�est lui qui a port� les portraits de belles dames � de nouvelles
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