Utagawa Toyokuni II

Utagawa Toyokuni II (1777-1835), also known as Toyoshige, was a designer of ukiyo-e Japanese woodblock prints in Edo. He was the pupil, son-in-law and adopted son of Toyokuni I. The former used the name Toyoshige (豊重) until 1826, the year after his teacher’s death, when he began signing his work Toyokuni (豊国). Kunisada, another student of Toyokuni I, did not recognize Toyoshige’s claim and declared himself “Toyokuni” and leader of the school. Toyoshige resumed signing his work “Toyoshige”.

Toyoshige’s students include Utagawa Kunimatsu, Utagawa Kunishige II, Utagawa Kuniteru III, and Utagawa Kunitsuru I.

Toyokuni I, Toyokuni II (Toyoshige), and Toyokuni III (Kunisada) each used the signature Toyokuni (豊国). The signature of Toyokuni II is easiest to distinguish by the chalice-shaped toyo (豊) kanji (see figure).

• Lane, Richard, Images from the Floating World, The Japanese Print, New York, Putnam, 1978, 338.
• Newland, Amy Reigle, The Hotei Encyclopedia of Japanese Woodblock Prints, Amsterdam, Hotei Publishing, 2005, Vol. 2, 504.

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