Young Beauty Adjusting Her Skis
Artist
Enomoto Chikatoshi
(Japanese, 1898 - 1973)
Datec. 1936–40
PeriodShōwa period (1926–1989)
MediumTwo-panel folding screen; ink, gofun (oyster shell white), metallic and mineral pigments on silk
DimensionsOverall (Open): 67 1/4 × 67 in. (170.8 × 170.2 cm)
ClassificationsPaintings
Credit LineMuseum purchase with funds provided by William and Jane Knapp, 2020
Object number2020.24
Chicly dressed and coiffed, a young woman crouches to adjust her bindings. Skiing became a popular leisure activity for Japanese during the 1920s. Interest in the sport was fueled by the movie industry and escalated in the years approaching the 1940 Winter Olympics, scheduled to be held in Sapporo, but cancelled due to the Second World War (1937–1945). Chikatoshi created several paintings and poster designs of skiers that celebrate the mobility, athleticism, and independence of modern Japanese women, albeit within the bounds of socially accepted ideals of womanhood. This screen, with its striking palette and synthesis of decorative elements and realism, offers a fresh take on the genre of bijinga (“beauty pictures”).
On View
Not on view
18th century
Late 17th–early 18th century