Kawanabe Kyosai woodblock “The Sparrow Dance (Suzume Odori)”, Edo satire 1863–66

Artist: Kawanabe Kyosai (1831–1889)
Series: One Hundred Pictures by Kyosai (暁斎百図, Kyosai Hyakuzu)
Date: ca. 1863–1866 (late Edo period)
Publishers and editions: the series was issued twice in the 19th century — first as single sheets in the 1860s (Wakasaya Yoichi), and later as an album reprint in the 1880s (Okura Magobei)
Format: chūban (approx. 13 × 18 cm)
Medium: polychrome woodblock print (nishiki-e) on handmade washi paper

Subject and scene
Suzume Odori — the lively Sparrow Dance associated with festival entertainment. Masked performers in happi coats leap, bow and balance as if on a slack line; below, two spectators with pipes react while trays and props suggest a street-show setting. The title inscription at left reads suzume odori.

Meaning and context
Kyosai captures popular festival theatre as comic pageant: quick sparrow-like steps, rhythmic poses and playful masks turn everyday entertainment into a satirical vignette about exuberance, fatigue and the bustle of urban pleasure. It is a quintessential Hyakuzu moment where folk culture meets sharp observation.

Material and stylistic notes
Thin handmade washi with visible pigment bleed; vivid beni-pink ground, deep indigo garments, crisp black contours. Printing quality corresponds to early production of the 1860s; however, both nineteenth-century editions share the same block design, and a precise printing stage cannot be stated with certainty.

Condition
Good for its age; pigments remain lively, paper with natural wear, small abrasions and marks of time. Additional photos on request.

Shipping
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