Ichikawa Danjūrō I as Soga Gorō

Ichikawa Danjūrō I as Soga Gorō

Okumura Masanobu

An item at Metropolitan Museum of Art

The versatile artist Okumura Masanobu portrayed the great actor Ichikawa Danjūrō I (1660–1704) playing the role of a swaggering hero, or aragoto, Soga Gorō—the role that made him famous. Soga Gorō performed one of his courageous deeds during a hunting trip at the foot of Mount Fuji, where he and his brother avenged the murder of their father. Originally a page of an album, this print was a memorial portrait of Danjūrō I, made several years after his death.

Asian Art

An exhibit at Metropolitan Museum of Art

Ichikawa Danjūrō I as Soga GorōIchikawa Danjūrō I as Soga GorōIchikawa Danjūrō I as Soga GorōIchikawa Danjūrō I as Soga GorōIchikawa Danjūrō I as Soga Gorō

The Met's collection of Asian art—more than 35,000 objects, ranging in date from the third millennium B.C. to the twenty-first century—is one of the largest and most comprehensive in the world. Each of the many civilizations of Asia is represented by outstanding works, providing an unrivaled experience of the artistic traditions of nearly half the world.