Tsukioka Yoshitoshi,
Empress Jingū leading the invasion of
Korea, a preparatory drawing and colour
woodblock print
Japan
Meiji era, AD
1879
The scene features Empress Jingū, a legendary
regent of Japan of the late fourth to early fifth century, who is
said to have led an invasion of Korea. She is seen here about to
carve with her bow on the rock-face the belligerent declaration,
'The emperor of Korea is my dog'. Many Japanese of
the Meiji era adopted Western dress, and Jingu's costume
appears to feature a bustle, although these were not introduced to
the imperial court until the 1880s. The finished print is no. 15 in
the series Dai-Nippon shi ryaku
zue ('Concise Illustrated History of
Great Japan'), issued in April
1879.
Among the group of
fifty-two preparatory drawings by Yoshitoshi (1839-92), originally
pasted into one album, this falls into the subject category of
valiant emperors and historical figures loyal to the imperial
cause. The emperor had been newly 'restored' to
power in 1868, and works were being produced as propaganda for the
imperial institution. Yoshitoshi's prints can also be seen
as a precursor to the flourishing of history painting of the later
Meiji era (1868-1912), which Japanese artists knew was regarded as
the highest form of painting in the
West.
The basic outlines of
the drawings were done in pale red ink, which was overlaid with
black as the lines took a more definite shape. Where alterations
were needed paper was pasted over. The collection of drawings fully
demonstrates the force and emotive power of Yoshitoshi's
art, and allow a glimpse into the fascinating process of his
artistic creativity over a period of more than a
decade.