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Utagawa Toyokuni

Courtesans of the Ōgiya on a Spring Outing

mid- or late 1790s
One of a triptych of woodblock prints

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In the collection of Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland · as of July 2026

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FROM THE CLEVELAND MUSEUM OF ART’S CATALOG

In these prints, two courtesans of the Ōgiya brothel are entering an open pavilion, while another group gathers around a Japanese hibachi inside. Hanaōgi, the most celebrated courtesan of Ōgiya in the late 1700s, is depicted at a desk. Holding a brush in her hand, she turns her head to one side as if gathering her thoughts before writing in the book before her. Both her position and her loosened hair separate Hanaōgi from her courtesan companions who wear elaborate coiffures. This depiction of her captures both her knowledge of poetry and her skill as a calligrapher.

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