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The Actor Bandō Kikumatsu II as a Pony Dancer

The Actor Bandō Kikumatsu II as a Pony Dancer

Artist/Maker (Japanese, 1711–1785)
Publisher
Date1749
MediumWoodblock print (benizuri-e); ink and limited color on paper
DimensionsVertical ōban; overall: 16 3/16 × 11 1/4 in. (41.1 × 28.6 cm)
Credit LineMary A. Ainsworth Bequest
Object number1950.206
Status
Not on view
More Information
With chrysanthemum flowers forming a background, a boy is dancing with a toy pony, with other toys scattered on the ground near him. The dance is probably a harukoma 春駒, or spring colt dance, that imitates the movements of a horse.

This print depicts the kabuki actor Bandō Kikumatsu (1741–68), who debuted as a child during the eleventh month of 1749 in the play Yoritomo gunbai kagami performed at the Ichimuraza theater. Kikumatsu’s costume is decorated with a pattern of auspicious good-luck symbols and the Bandō family’s circular actor’s crest featuring a flying crane. He also wears a long outer haori garment with an arabesque floral pattern.
Exhibition History
Summer Asia Institute Exhibition
  • Kresge Art Center, Michigan State University (June 24, 1959 - July 30, 1959 )
Japanese Prints from the Ainsworth Collection
  • Allen Memorial Art Museum, Oberlin, OH (September 18, 1979 - October 21, 1979 )
Quality and Technique in Prints
  • Allen Memorial Art Museum, Oberlin, OH (October 4, 1996 - December 22, 1996 )
Visions of Turmoil and Tranquility: Japanese Woodblock Prints from the Collection
  • Allen Memorial Art Museum, Oberlin, OH (September 17, 2005 - December 23, 2005 )
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
This record was created from historic documentation and may not have been reviewed by a curator. Noticed a mistake? Have some extra information about this object? Please contact us.