Rules for the Department of Young Ladies (Shōgaku Joreishiki zukai) c. late 19th century

Editor: This print, "Rules for the Department of Young Ladies" by Adachi Ginkō, feels so serene yet structured. The women are poised, almost doll-like. What's your take on this scene? Curator: It’s interesting, isn't it? Ginkō's work, to me, always feels like a window into a world both familiar and impossibly distant. The text hanging above each scene... do you see it as a guide, or perhaps a gentle confinement? Editor: I hadn't thought of it as confinement, more like instruction. But I see what you mean. It's like a beautiful cage. Curator: Exactly! And the gardens outside, are they a symbol of the freedom these women are denied, or the beauty they are meant to cultivate within themselves? Food for thought, isn’t it? Editor: Definitely. It makes me look at the print in a whole new way. Thanks!