Lord Sadanobu with a Demon Behind a Screen
- woodblock print on paper
-
15 x 10 in
(38.1 x 25.4 cm)
- Tsukioka Yoshitoshi
This picture illustrates a short tale of the supernatural about a powerful official of the Heian period (794-1185) court. As described in the accompanying caption, Lord Sadanobu was a powerful and morally upstanding minister. The demon reaches out from behind the hanging bamboo blinds in a palace corridor to grab his sword scabbard. The demon vanishes as soon as Sadanobu attacks it, reinforcing the creature’s supernatural origin.
Yoshitoshi has portrayed Lord Sadanobu in court garb modeled after clothes worn by officials in China during the Tang dynasty (618 – 907). Many aspects of Japanese culture during this period were modeled on the practices of their counterparts in China. Note the way Sadanobu’s robe is printed, with foliate patterns on his black robe rendered in a second layer by glossy black ink to represent brocade patterns in a fine black silk material. The demon’s features are also very striking, such as his grotesque protruding googly-eyes and lumpy, knotted musculature.
What do you think this story says about Lord Sadanobu’s character?
- Created: 1865
- Attribution: Collection of Arizona State University Art Museum - Gift of Darlene Goto
- Collections: Goto Collection - 100 Tales From China and Japan
Other Work From ASU Asian Art History
