In this artwork, how is the Publication and legacy discussed?
The print was designed by Utamaro and published by Tsutaya Jūzaburō in the fourth or fifth year of the Kansei era of the traditional Japanese era divisions (c. 1792–93).  Tsutaya's publisher's seal is printed on the left above Hisa's head, and a round censor's seal appears above it.  Utamaro's signature is printed in the bottom left.Fumito Kondō considered the print revolutionary; such expressive, individualized faces are not seen in the stereotyped figures in the works of Utamaro's predecessors such as Harunobu and Kiyonaga, and it was the first time in ukiyo-e history that the beauties were drawn from the general urban population rather than the pleasure quarters.Records indicate Kita was rated highly in teahouse rankings, and that curious fans flooded her father's teahouse; it is said this caused her to become arrogant and cease to serve tea unless called for.  Hisa ranked lower, though still appears to have been quite popular—a wealthy merchant offered 1500 ryō for her, but her parents refused and she continued to work at the teahouse.  Utamaro took advantage of this rivalry in his art, going as far as to portray the two tearoom beauties in tug-of-war and other competitions, with deities associated with their neighbourhoods supporting them: Buddhist guardian deity Acala was associated with Yagenbori, and supported Hisa; Guanyin, the Goddess of Mercy, was associated with the temple Sensō-ji in Asakusa, and supported Kita.The triangular positioning of three figures became something of a vogue in prints of the mid-1790s.  The "Three Beauties of the Kansei Era" normally refer to the three who appear in this print; on occasion, Utamaro replaced Toyohina with Kikumoto O-Han.  Utamaro placed the three beauties in the same composition three or four years later in a print called Three Beauties, in which Hisa holds a teacup saucer in her left hand rather than a handkerchief, and Kita holds her fan in both hands.  To Eiji Yoshida, the figures in this print lack the personalities that were the charm of the earlier.  Yoshida thought less of the further undifferentiated personalities of a later print with the same triangular composition, Three Beauties Holding Bags of Snacks, published by Yamaguchiya.  As testimony to their popularity, the three models often appeared in the works of other artists, and Utamaro continued to use them in other prints, individually or in pairs.There are no records of sales figures of ukiyo-e from the era in which the print was made.  Determining the popularity of a print requires indirect means, one of which is to compare the differences in surviving copies.  For example, the more copies printed, the more the woodblocks wore down, resulting in loss of line clarity and details.  Another example is that publishers often made changes to the blocks in later print runs.  Researchers use clues such as these to determine whether prints were frequently reprinted—a sign of their popularity.  The original printing of Three Beauties of the Present Day had the title in a bookmark-shape in the top right corner with the names of the three beauties to its left. Only two copies of this state are believed to have survived; they are in the collections of the Museum of Fine Arts in Boston, and the Koishikawa Ukiyo-e Art Museum in Tokyo.  Later printings lack the title, the names of the beauties, or both, and the position of the publisher's and censor's seals varies slightly.  The reasons for the changes are subject to speculation, such as that the beauties may have moved away, or their fame may have fallen.  Based on clues such as these changes, researchers believe this print was a popular hit for Utamaro and Tsutaya.
Group portraits of the three Kansei beauties by Utamaro
Sensō-ji Kiyonaga Harunobu ryō traditional Japanese era divisions Utamaro Tsutaya Jūzaburō Asakusa Guanyin state Museum of Fine Arts Kansei Ukiyo-e ukiyo-e teahouse Yagenbori Acala