Explore the Image about the Print details of this artwork, Eijudō Hibino at Seventy-one (Toyokuni I).
Depicted in the print is the seventy-one-year-old Nishimuraya Yohachi, seated on his mattress and bedding in front of a painted byōbu (屏風) folding screen. He is dressed formally in a winter haori coat and kimono, both decorated with a pattern of repeated 寿 (kotobuki) characters. Not only does this character signify "longevity," but it is also the second character in Eijudō (永寿堂), the name of Nishimuraya's shop.
On his lap, he holds a folded fan. He sits before a small, black lacquer lectern emblazoned with the mitsu tomoe logo representing his publishing house. Resting on the stand is an open book upon which Nishimuraya's gaze is resting. Given the fan and his posture, it is likely that he is engaging in the New Year's convention of reciting nō plays, an intended indication of the elegance and erudition of this "man of taste."
byōbu Nishimuraya Yohachi