Courtesan Arranging Her Hair

The scene is set for the imminent arrival of a patron, as a courtesan, simply but elegantly dressed in silks, adjusts her hairpins. The objects surrounding her suggest an atmosphere of sophistication. Behind the red futon is a folding screen with a monochrome Chinese landscape painted in the Kanō school style; in front is a lacquered smoking set (tabako-bon). Above her, a basket overflows with peonies, chrysanthemums, morning glories, wisteria, plum blossoms, and other flowers—an impossible collection known as the “flowers of the four seasons” and perhaps a reference to her unchanging beauty.

Although images of Yoshiwara courtesans are best known through mass-produced woodblock prints, a high-end market of paintings also existed for those who could afford them. Chōbunsai Eishi did many versions of this painting for those buyers, and at least four versions survive. He was born into a high-ranking samurai family and studied in the orthodox Kanō school, official painters to the ruling samurai elite. In the mid-1780s, however, he received permission to retire from his official duties and devote himself to ukiyo-e prints and paintings.