Utagawa Yoshitora (歌川芳虎)
Utagawa Yoshitora (歌川芳虎; fl. c. 1835 - 1882) was a member of the Utagawa school of woodblock artists of the late Edo and Meiji periods. Little is known about his early life aside from his being born in Edo (Tokyo). He was a student of Utagawa Kuniyoshi, with whom he later had a falling out, possibly due to his 1849 satirical, irreverent print of important figures from Japanese history. After briefly slipping past censors, the print became very popular but was immediately confiscated once authorities realized it could be interpreted as a thinly veiled critique of the Tokugawa (Yoshitora was arrested for fifty days as a result). Nevertheless, he continued to produce prints at an impressive rate, and, like his teacher, focused on prints depicting samurai, beautiful women, kabuki actors, and foreigners (Yokohama-e). His works were displayed at the 1867 Exposition Universel along with those of Sadahide, a member of another branch or lineage of the Utagawa school. Yoshitora was considered second only to Sadahide among nishiki-e artists around the time of the Meiji Restoration. The details of his death are unknown, but his last known work was published in 1882.
AKA: 歌川芳虎
Rare Ukiyo-e: Building a Bridge to Modernity.
筋違新眼鏡橋弌覧 / [The New Megane Bridge at a Glance].
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This is Utagawa Yoshitora's c. 1873 Ukiyo-e woodblock triptych of the New Megane Bridge near Tokyo. The view presents Japanese society at the start of the Meiji era, rooted in the traditions of the Edo period but rapidly adopting new influences from abroad. (more details)
Origins of Modern Japan's Banking System.
東京海運橋第一國立銀行の全圖并近圓の市中一覽の圖/ [Complete View of the First National Bank at the Tokyo Kaiun Bridge, with a View of the Nearby Cityscape].
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This stunning 1876 Ukiyo-e triptych, depicting the Dai-Ichi Bank Building in Tokyo, was drawn by the artist Yoshitora and published by Takekawa Seikichi. Both the bank and its building, along with several other financial institutions in the same area, were key signifiers of Japan's modernization in the early Meiji period. (more details)