Today’s Painting
今日画作
Utagawa Kuniyoshi was one of the last great masters of the Japanese ukiyo-e style of woodblock prints and painting. He was a member of the Utagawa school. The range of Kuniyoshi's subjects included many genres: landscapes, beautiful women, Kabuki actors, and mythical animals. He is known for depictions of the battles of legendary samurai heroes. His artwork incorporated aspects of Western representation in landscape painting and caricature.
歌川国芳是日本浮世绘风格木刻版画和绘画的最后一批大师之一。他曾是歌川学校的成员。国芳的绘画题材包括许多类型：风景，美丽的女人，歌舞伎演员和神话动物。他因描绘传说中的武士英雄之战而闻名。他的艺术作品结合了西方在山水画和漫画中的表现形式。
Despite his promising debut, the young Kuniyoshi failed to produce many works between 1818 and 1827, probably due to a lack of commissions from publishers, and the competition of other artists within the Utagawa school (Utagawa-ryū). His economic situation turned desperate at one point when he was forced to sell used tatami mats.
尽管初次登场前途大好，年轻的国芳却未能在1818年至1827年间创作出许多作品，这可能是因为缺乏出版商的佣金，以及与歌川学院内其他画家产生竞争。他的经济状况一度陷入了绝境，当时不得不出售二手榻榻米垫子。
During the 1820s, Kuniyoshi produced a number of heroic triptychs that show the first signs of an individual style. In 1827 he received his first major commission for the series, The Hundred and Eight Heroes of The Popular Suikoden (Tūszoku Suikoden gōketsu hyakuhachinin no hitori), based on the incredibly popular Chinese tale, the Shuihu Zhuan. In this series Kuniyoshi illustrated individual heroes on single sheets, drawing tattoos on his heroes, a novelty which soon influenced Edo fashion. The Suikoden series became extremely popular in Edo, and the demand for Kuniyoshi’s warrior prints increased, gaining him entrance into the major ukiyo-e and literary circles.
在1820年代，国芳绘制了许多英勇的三联画，开始展现出个人风格。1827年，他在《流行水浒传的108位好汉》这一系列上，获得了第一个重要委托。这个系列是基于中国受欢迎的故事《水浒传》。在本系列中，国芳在单张纸上画出了各个英雄，并在英雄人物上画了纹身，这一点很新颖并很快影响了江户时代的时尚。《水浒传》系列在江户时代极其受欢迎，人们对国芳绘制的武士版画的需求也增加了，这使他得以跻身于浮世绘和文学界。
Utagawa Kuniyoshi was a huge cat lover. It was said that his studio was full of them. That love spilled into his art. On this woodcut we see court ladies showing a giant snow cat to a young prince Genji after the first snow.
歌川国芳特别痴迷猫。据说他的工作室里都是猫。这份对猫的喜爱也影响了他的艺术。在这张木刻版画上，我们看到宫廷女士在初雪后向年轻的王子源治展示了一只巨大的雪猫。
Artist Introduction
画家简介
Utagawa Kuniyoshi was one of the last great masters of the Japanese ukiyo-e style of woodblock prints and painting. He was a member of the Utagawa school. The range of Kuniyoshi's subjects included many genres: landscapes, beautiful women, Kabuki actors, and mythical animals. He is known for depictions of the battles of legendary samurai heroes. His artwork incorporated aspects of Western representation in landscape painting and caricature.
歌川国芳是日本浮世绘风格木刻版画和绘画的最后一批大师之一。他曾是歌川学校的成员。国芳的绘画题材包括许多类型：风景，美丽的女人，歌舞伎演员和神话动物。他因描绘传说中的武士英雄之战而闻名。他的艺术作品结合了西方在山水画和漫画中的表现形式。
Despite his promising debut, the young Kuniyoshi failed to produce many works between 1818 and 1827, probably due to a lack of commissions from publishers, and the competition of other artists within the Utagawa school (Utagawa-ryū). His economic situation turned desperate at one point when he was forced to sell used tatami mats.
尽管初次登场前途大好，年轻的国芳却未能在1818年至1827年间创作出许多作品，这可能是因为缺乏出版商的佣金，以及与歌川学院内其他画家产生竞争。他的经济状况一度陷入了绝境，当时不得不出售二手榻榻米垫子。
During the 1820s, Kuniyoshi produced a number of heroic triptychs that show the first signs of an individual style. In 1827 he received his first major commission for the series, The Hundred and Eight Heroes of The Popular Suikoden (Tūszoku Suikoden gōketsu hyakuhachinin no hitori), based on the incredibly popular Chinese tale, the Shuihu Zhuan. In this series Kuniyoshi illustrated individual heroes on single sheets, drawing tattoos on his heroes, a novelty which soon influenced Edo fashion. The Suikoden series became extremely popular in Edo, and the demand for Kuniyoshi’s warrior prints increased, gaining him entrance into the major ukiyo-e and literary circles.
在1820年代，国芳绘制了许多英勇的三联画，开始展现出个人风格。1827年，他在《流行水浒传的108位好汉》这一系列上，获得了第一个重要委托。这个系列是基于中国受欢迎的故事《水浒传》。在本系列中，国芳在单张纸上画出了各个英雄，并在英雄人物上画了纹身，这一点很新颖并很快影响了江户时代的时尚。《水浒传》系列在江户时代极其受欢迎，人们对国芳绘制的武士版画的需求也增加了，这使他得以跻身于浮世绘和文学界。
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