Upper Class 

This woodblock print, "Upper Class," was made by Kitagawa Utamaro in Japan during the Edo period, sometime before 1806. The print depicts two women, likely courtesans, engaged in a moment of leisure. Looking closely, the visual codes of clothing, setting, and posture tell us much about the social hierarchy of the time. Utamaro was a master of portraying the floating world, the pleasure districts of Edo. His prints weren't just passive records; they actively participated in shaping the image of women in Japanese society. The artist captures a sense of elegance and refinement, but the very act of depicting these women speaks to the complex social conditions of the era. Historians of Japanese art delve into prints like this, and the political economy of the art world that sustained them. We consider questions like: Who were the patrons of these prints, and how did their tastes influence the subjects and styles of the artists? Ultimately, understanding art means understanding its place in the broader social fabric.