Entry by Tiffany Santos: Ichikawa Danjūrō II in the Scene "Wait a Moment" (Shibaraku)

The title of the image is Ichikawa Danjūrō II in the Scene "Wait a Moment" (Shibaraku), created by a Japonese artist named Torii Kiyotada. The image was made during the Edo period (1615-1868), more specifically created in ca. 1715. This image is public domain. This still life image is from the play "Wait a Moment", which further opened the door to kabuki theatre. Kabuki itself was started around 1600 by a woman named Okuni and her troupe, and were categorized as raunchy, giving the whole genre a sour taste to authorities. Wait a Moment signifies the beauty in non realistic makeup, hugely exaggerated costumes, extreme vocal patterns and powerful gestures. In the image, Danjūrō is striking an abstract pose as well a wearing a geometric fabric, filled with squares and triangles and clusters of lines. This play has a shorter script than others but can and are preformed upon hours on end due to the rituals including singling and dancing and pure space being absorbed by the actor. This play i salso preformed within generations of the same family, the Danjūrō family, making it only acceptable for their bloodline to perform.

Author: Tiffany Santos