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Two Women with Drum, Suzuki Harunobu
Two Women with Drum, 18th century

Suzuki Harunobu

c. 1725–1770 · Ukiyo-e · 15 works

Suzuki Harunobu helped establish the richly colored woodblock prints known as nishiki-e in eighteenth-century Japan. His designs often bring young figures into quiet encounters, seasonal scenes, and settings that echo poems or older stories. Small choices carry much of the feeling: a shared umbrella, patterned fabric, or a contrast between dark and light robes. The printed surface also matters. In some impressions, embossing adds texture without ink, rewarding a closer look beyond the colors that first catch the eye.

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15 works · 1750–1770

Notice how clothing patterns and broad, plain areas balance one another. What does a small gesture suggest about the figures’ relationship?

1750–1761 · 3 works

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1764–1765 · 7 works

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In the museum: Ukiyo-e room · 2 works

1766–1770 · 5 works

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Suzuki Harunobu is generally credited as the first Japanese printmaker to give each color its own block. Such full-color prints, called nishiki-e or brocade pictures, were perfected in 1765, and his finest work dates from the last five years of his life. Here one hides a calendar, another a visual riddle, and two are tall pillar prints.

In the museum: Ukiyo-e room · 3 works

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Shared styles, periods, or traditions in the collection.

Original museum reproductions, with source records on every artwork page.

Artist information: The Met (Lovers Walking in the Snow, Shimizu Temple).

Public-domain art. An imagined museum; no museum affiliation.