Ono no Komachi: Number Two (Sono ni), from the series Stylish Parodies of the Six Poetic Immortals (Fūryū yatsushi rokkasen)

Chōbunsai Eishi

An item at Metropolitan Museum of Art

Each print in this series presents one of the great Six Poetic Immortals of the past in up-to-date garb. Ono no Komachi (active ca. 850) was the only woman of the six. One of her famous waka (court poems) accompanies the imaginary portrait showing Komachi in flowery Edo-style robes. The motif of ephemeral cherry blossoms in the image echoes the themes of transience in the poem: Iro miede utsurou mono wa yo no naka no hito no kokoro no hana ni zo arikeru We cannot clearly see the shifting colors as they fade—the flowers in the hearts of those we love in this fickle world of ours. —Trans. John T. Carpenter

Asian Art

An exhibit at Metropolitan Museum of Art

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.

Metropolitan Museum of Art