Courtesan and Customer Behind Shōji c. 1876 - 1886

Editor: This woodblock print, "Courtesan and Customer Behind Shoji" by Toyohara Kunichika, really intrigues me with its play of light and shadow. What do you make of the symbolic weight of this visual division? Curator: The shoji screen becomes a powerful boundary. Notice how the customer exists only as a silhouette, almost a phantom. What feelings does this evoke? Editor: A sense of distance, maybe? A power imbalance? Curator: Indeed. Consider the fan. What cultural associations does a fan hold? Editor: I guess it could represent elegance, but also concealment... Curator: Precisely. The fan hides, the screen divides. Do you feel the image reveals more than it conceals? Editor: That's a compelling question. The shadows almost tell a story of their own, one of societal roles. Thanks, I've learned a lot!