Okuko Hikozaemon Protects the Tokugawa Shogun from the Spear of Goro Matabei Mototsugu, from the series "The Siege of Osaka" (Osaka Gunki no Uchi) Possibly 1884

Editor: Here we have Tsukioka Yoshitoshi's woodblock print, "Okuko Hikozaemon Protects the Tokugawa Shogun from the Spear of Goro Matabei Mototsugu." It’s part of a series on the Siege of Osaka, and it definitely has a dramatic, almost cinematic feel. What leaps out at you when you look at this piece? Curator: It's the dynamism, isn't it? Yoshitoshi masterfully captures the tension. I find myself drawn to the protective figure, Okuko. The artist has created an intense guardian figure. It makes me wonder, what does protection truly mean in times of war? It seems so fragile, so easily broken, almost like holding water in cupped hands. Editor: So, the protective figure isn't just a hero, but a symbol of the fragility of peace? Curator: Precisely! It is as if he is walking a tightrope in a tempest. Editor: Wow, I hadn't thought of it that way. Thanks, this really adds another layer of meaning to the print.