Four Children Approaching Horse
Yeisan 1850
Ink on Paper
Color, Woodcut 39×26 cm
Repository: (Black) Print Collection, Art History Department, Cummings Art Center, Connecticut College, New London
Black 056
This painting depicts four children running towards a horse. These young people have swords by their hips and traditional Japanese robes on, these are either kimonos or yukatas. These colorful robes were often worn by younger children and the bright colors are used in a way to show prosperity and joy. In the background, you can see members of a small community doing a form of chores or manual labor. They are likely gardening or tending to some form of crops and agricultural work.
This painting can be compared very easily to other typical pieces of Japanese art work from the 19th century. Like the traditional ukiyo-e style, this piece of art work was a woodblock print, a type of medium used often by artists in Japan from the 17th-19th centuries. The children in the middle of the print, are seen approaching a horse that is not in the picture, yet the children are the main focus of this piece. There is also a temple in the background to emphasize the religious importance of the land and culture of Japan and Japanese Buddhism.
https://library.artstor.org/#/asset/CONNASIAN_106310617014;prevRouteTS=1632424728677
