Repairing a Kimono

Ryûryûkyo Shinsai (mentioned on object), 1809

In een vertrek repareert een vrouw in geknielde houding de kimono van een staande vrouw. Naast haar op de grond een doos en een meetlint. Met twee gedichten.

  • Artwork typeprint, surimono
  • Object numberRP-P-1991-668
  • Dimensionsheight 137 mm x width 186 mm
  • Physical characteristicsnishikie, with metallic pigments and blindprinting

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"adult woman (+ two persons)" by Ryûryûkyo Shinsai

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Ryûryûkyo Shinsai (mentioned on object), 1809

A Shrine Visit

Two Women Playing with a Child

Ryûryûkyo Shinsai (mentioned on object), 1807

Two Women Playing with a Child

Chopping Herbs

Ryûryûkyo Shinsai (mentioned on object), 1809

Chopping Herbs

more by Ryûryûkyo Shinsai

Fish and Shells

Ryûryûkyo Shinsai (mentioned on object), 1821

Fish and Shells

Figuren bij vijver met bloesem

after print by Ryûryûkyo Shinsai (mentioned on object), 1890 - 1900

Figuren bij vijver met bloesem

Rolls of Fabric

Ryûryûkyo Shinsai (mentioned on object), c. 1820

Rolls of Fabric

Removing Clogged Snow

Ryûryûkyo Shinsai (mentioned on object), 1807

Removing Clogged Snow

Courtesan Standing by a Kimono on a Rack

Ryûryûkyo Shinsai (mentioned on object), 1809

Courtesan Standing by a Kimono on a Rack

Dansende courtisane

Ryûryûkyo Shinsai (mentioned on object), 1807

Dansende courtisane

Ryûryûkyo Shinsai

Repairing a Kimono

Japan, Japan, Japan, 1809

Provenance

…; purchased from the dealer Hotei Japanese Prints, Leiden, by J.H.W. Goslings (1943-2011), Epse, near Deventer, 1990;1Coll. cat. Goslings 1999, p. 44, cat. no. 90 by whom donated to the museum, 1991

Object number: RP-P-1991-668

Credit line: Gift of J.H.W. Goslings, Epse

Context

The Hamagurigai is Number 33 in Oeda Ryuho's A Series of Shells as Brocade of the Coast, Kaitsukushi ura no nishiki, of 1749.

For general notes on the series, see RP-P-1991-561.

The artist

Biography

Ryuryukyo Shinsai (n.d., but often given as 1764?-1820; the latter date is definitely incorrect as his last known designs were issued in 1825) is said to have first been follower of Tawaraya Sori, and later of Katsushika Hokusai, who gave him the art-name Shinsai in 1800. His personal name was Masayuki. He was one of the most prolific designers of surimono in the early 19th century and thoroughly explored the possibilities of issuing works in titled series.

Entry

Two women in a room opening onto a garden. One of them kneeling in front of the other, a thread between her lips, repairing the hem of the standing woman's kimono.

The Clam, Hamagurigai (Meretrix meretrix lusoria Roeding), from the series A Matching Game of Poems, Kasen awase.

There must be a connection between needlework, as seen in this design, and the hamaguri shell, because Hokusai also illustrates various needlework products in his series A Matching Game with the Genroku Poem Shells, Genroku kasen kaiawase, of 1821 (e.g. RP-P-1963-26). Perhaps it refers to the custom of putting scented ointment inside clams, covering them with silk or cotton, sewing them closed and wearing them attached to pouches, as can be seen to some extent in Hokusai's design.

Two poems by Tawara Fuchiko and Utamichi Hatsunari.

Issued by the Yomogawa
Unsigned

Literature

M. Forrer, Surimono in the Rijksmuseum Amsterdam, Leiden 2013, no. 162

Citation

M. Forrer, 2013, 'Ryûryûkyo Shinsai, Repairing a Kimono, Japan, 1809', in Surimono from the Goslings Collection in the Rijksmuseum, online coll. cat. Amsterdam: https://data.rijksmuseum.nl/200467488

(accessed 8 December 2025 11:48:32).

Footnotes

  • 1Coll. cat. Goslings 1999, p. 44, cat. no. 90