The Awaishi Fishers

Kitagawa Utamaro I, 1735 - 1806



The Awaishi Fishers

Kitagawa Utamaro I 1735 - 1806

Summary

This is the third of a series of three prints that make up a triptych when placed together. The triptych depicts a group of 'ama' divers (women whose work is to dive for shellfish or pearls) finishing a day of diving for sea snails. In this print a woman wrings the end of a red cloth tied around her waist. She is holding a knife in her mouth used for opening shells. She looks behind her to the viewer's right where a woman crouching picks shellfish from a basket to buy. A poem on the right side of the print reads (in translation) 'More tempting than the flesh of the abalone is the skin of the diver'.


Object Name

The Awaishi Fishers

Creators Name

Kitagawa Utamaro I

Date Created

1797-1798

Dimensions

framed: 54.5cm x 40.8cm

accession number

1978.324/91

Place of creation

Japan

Medium


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