There were thousands of Ukiyo-e artists, however, three stand
out. They are Utamaro, Hokusai and Hiroshige. Utamaro Kitagawa
is highly appreciated as the dominating Ukiyo-e artist of the
late eighteenth century. Yet little is known about his life.
Neither the precise date of Utamaro’s birth, his birthplace, nor
any substantial information about his parents is known. The
original name of Utamaro was Ichitaro Kitagawa. It is generally
agreed that he started his career as a pupil of the painter
Toriyama Sekien. His early known works were actor portraits and
theater programs, published under the name of Utagawa Toyoaki.
In 1781 or 1782 he changed his name to Utamaro Kitagawa. Around
1783 Utamaro started a successful cooperation with the publisher
Tsutaya Juzaburo. Together they published several book
illustrations. The early works of Utamaro were influenced by
Torii Kiyonaga and Harunobu. Beginning in 1791 Utamaro
concentrated his work on single portraits of women. He took his
models from the street or from the Y