Eyebrow Pencil

The unusual choice of a horizontal format, together with a triangular composition, allowed Shinsui a wider surface upon which to emphasize the white skin of his subject, a geisha or actress kneeling in front of a mirror while applying her makeup.  This print is also an excellent example of the evolution of Shinsui and Watanabe’s thinking with regard to color. As they worked toward the final version of the print, the ground evolved from a flesh tone to pastel pink and finally to bright red.  With each iteration, adjustments to the colors of the woman’s robes became necessary.[1]

Itō Shinsui

Hamanaka Shinji and Amy Reigle Newland, The Female Image: 20th Century Prints of Japanese Beauties (Leiden: Hotei, 2003), 61.

1928

Woodblock print

27.0 x 38.0 cm