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Japanese Kabuki Legends on show at Oxford’s Ashmolean




For lovers of all things Japanese, theatre or printmaking there’s an excellent free exhibition running at the Ashmolean – Kabuki Legends Stencil Prints of Takahashi Hiromitsu.

Japanese artist Takahashi Hiromitsu creates dynamic, colourful prints showing exciting moments in kabuki, Japan’s traditional dance-drama.

Gojōbashi Ushiwaka, 1998 © Hiromitsu Takahashi & The Tolman Collection
Gojōbashi Ushiwaka, 1998 © Hiromitsu Takahashi & The Tolman Collection
Yayoi, 2005 © Hiromitsu Takahashi & The Tolman Collection
Yayoi, 2005 © Hiromitsu Takahashi & The Tolman Collection

Hiromitsu’s striking designs are not portraits of actual actors, but visualisations of famous kabuki roles.

In kabuki, performers wearing elaborate costumes and make-up use stylised movement and song to enact melodramatic stories about love, loyalty and the clash between duty and emotion.

Gojōbashi Benkei, 1998 © Hiromitsu Takahashi & The Tolman Collection
Gojōbashi Benkei, 1998 © Hiromitsu Takahashi & The Tolman Collection
The Cat of Okazaki, 2015 © Hiromitsu Takahashi & The Tolman Collection
The Cat of Okazaki, 2015 © Hiromitsu Takahashi & The Tolman Collection

The works recall Japan’s traditional ukiyo-e woodblock actor prints, but are made using a different technique – kappazuri, or stencil printing, originally used for dyeing kimono. This process is complex and labour-intensive and Hiromitsu is one of very few artists working in this way today.

This exhibition showcases a selection of these unusual prints from the Ashmolean's own extensive collection of Hiromitsu's work, generously presented by Philip Harris.

Open until February 4, 2024 in Gallery 29

Admission is FREE

Images all © Hiromitsu Takahashi / The Tolman Collection



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