The Kabuki Actor Nakamura Utaemon III (Shikan) as Ishikawa Goemon

The Kabuki Actor Nakamura Utaemon III (Shikan) as Ishikawa Goemon

Shunkōsai Hokushū 春好斎北洲

An item at Metropolitan Museum of Art

This dynamic portrait by the Osaka-based artist Shunkōsai Hokushū captures the celebrated Kabuki actor Utaemon III (1778–1838) in the role of the legendary bandit-hero Ishikawa Goemon, here disguised in the stolen robes and cap of an imperial messenger. Capturing a scene from the play The Golden Gate and the Paulownia Crest (Kinmon gosan no kiri), Goemon hatched a plot to steal the Imperial Seal and thereby realize his dictatorial ambitions to eventually seize control of the Palace and rule the country.

Asian Art

An exhibit at Metropolitan Museum of Art

The Kabuki Actor Nakamura Utaemon III (Shikan) as Ishikawa GoemonThe Kabuki Actor Nakamura Utaemon III (Shikan) as Ishikawa GoemonThe Kabuki Actor Nakamura Utaemon III (Shikan) as Ishikawa GoemonThe Kabuki Actor Nakamura Utaemon III (Shikan) as Ishikawa GoemonThe Kabuki Actor Nakamura Utaemon III (Shikan) as Ishikawa Goemon

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.