The Actor Matsumoto Koshiro IV Seated in an Outer Room 1789

Editor: So, this is Katsukawa Shun'ei's "The Actor Matsumoto Koshiro IV Seated in an Outer Room" from 1789, a woodblock print. I’m struck by how…ordinary it seems. It’s a portrait, yes, but almost feels like we've just caught him backstage. What do you make of it? Curator: Well, its power lies in how it reframes labor and production. Shun'ei wasn't simply depicting an actor; he was documenting a figure embedded within a complex system of cultural production. Notice the emphasis on the materials themselves: the woodblocks used to create the print, the paper, the inks. These weren't just neutral elements but active participants in shaping the image and, by extension, the actor's persona. What do those details suggest to you about how art and performance were perceived at the time? Editor: That's a really interesting point. I hadn’t considered the material production in that way before. So, it’s not just *what* is being represented but *how* it was made? How does that influence how we think about value? Curator: Exactly. Think about the labor involved: the artist, the carvers, the printers… they're all essential to this image's existence. This challenges our notion of the single artistic genius. Ukiyo-e prints, while celebrated, were also mass-produced, a form of consumption tied to popular culture. This challenges traditional boundaries. Editor: So, looking at the woodblock print is a window into the social and economic forces at play during that period. It gives this "ordinary" backstage moment a much broader significance, rooted in production. Curator: Precisely! Seeing the process embedded within the art object encourages us to consider art-making as part of wider economic and social systems. It really makes us think about whose labor makes art possible.