Skip to main content

Mother and Children with Toys

Artist/Maker (Japanese, 1735–1785)
Date1751–64
MediumWoodblock print (benizuri-e); ink and limited color on paper
DimensionsHorizontal ōban (consists of 3 vertical hosoban); overall: 11 × 17 in. (27.9 × 43.2 cm)
Credit LineMary A. Ainsworth Bequest
Object number1950.222
Status
Not on view
More Information
This charming three-sheet print, or triptych, combines three compositions of women and children that could be purchased separately or put together as a set. On the right, an older boy with a sword and the haircut of a young man (wakashū) reaches back for his hobby horse. In the middle print, a young woman carries an infant while a girl with a ball looks back. Finally, a younger boy plays with a top while a young woman holds a drum and a lion mask for him.

During the Hōreki period (1751–64) when these prints were produced, prints depicting children or mothers increased dramatically. With continued peace and the growth of Edo as a major urban center, citizens took great pride to be able to raise healthy children and the depiction of children became an important theme in ukiyo-e.
Exhibition History
Forty-eight Japanese Prints from the Mary A. Ainsworth Collection
  • University of Notre Dame, Notre Dame, IN ( 1954-02 - 1954-02 )
  • University of the South, Sewannee, TN ( 1954-03 - 1954-03 )
Japanese Prints from the Mary A. Ainsworth Collection
  • Allen Memorial Art Museum, Oberlin, OH (May 20, 1986 - July 20, 1986 )
The View from Afar: Whistler and the Japanese Print
  • Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH (August 9, 1988 - October 16, 1988 )
Ukiyo-e Prints from the Mary Ainsworth Collection
  • Chiba City Museum of Art, Chiba, Japan (April 13, 2019 - May 25, 2019 )
  • Shizuoka City Museum of Art, Shizuoka, Japan (June 8, 2019 - July 28, 2019 )
  • Osaka City Museum of Fine Arts, Osaka, Japan (August 10, 2019 - September 29, 2019 )
Ukiyo-e Prints from the Mary Ainsworth Collection
  • Allen Memorial Art Museum, Oberlin, OH (January 14, 2020 - December 6, 2020 )
Collections
  • Asian