Shunga (æ¥ç») is a genre of Japanese erotica art, often in the form of woodblock prints or illustrations, and directly translates as 'pictures of spring' - a euphemism for sex. Shunga reached its peak, of both popularity and accessibility during the Edo period, between 1603 and 1867, due to the wood block printing techniques that allowed a mass production style of distribution. In this essay I will be focusing on this period for my analysis due to the abundance of resources and material from that era of Shunga artwork, where the depictions of sexual themes and scenes were arguably 'average' and relatable to the typical citizen. This period of Shunga strayed away from overly exaggerated and theatrical scenes of sexual encounters, more closely depicting intimate images with a strong focus on sex and love within a marriage or relationship. This time characterized the sexual encounters of 'ordinary people' such as lower and middle class workers. The people themselves are not idolized, however the scenes themselves represented sex in a world arguably free from taboo and prejudice: “Edo period shunga sought to express a varied world of contemporary sexual possibilities”.
Miyagawa Issho, born 1689, is an example of an acclaimed Ukiyo-e artist who produced a number of shunga illustrations and paintings, recognizable by his individual style that created softer, delicate scenes of sex and romance. I not only decided to include Miyagawa's artworks for his acclaimed influence and style within the ukiyo-e period but for his representations of gay sex and relationships. Despite the obvious taboos against homosexual citizens within Japan, it can be argued that previous to the 1800s laws surrounding gay sex and relationships were far more progressive than other Eastern countries - with same sex sexual relationships only being illegal between 1872 and 1880. This perhaps comes as surprising, considering Japan's current grey area when it comes to discrimination and rights of the LGBT community, when we look back to the 1600s and see such progressive presentations of same sex relationships.
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There is a vast collection of hand scrolls to analyze and ponder from Miyagawa, however I wanted to select one that demonstrates his signature softness. A painting that does not fetishize or objectify the characters, and shows same sex love in a beautiful scene.
Despite some of Miyagawa's paintings depicting more explicit scenes of gay intercourse, this illustration could be argued as a more controversial image. Regardless of the taboo subject presented, when we see these themes presented in a shocking and jarring manner it appears to go hand and hand with the taboo nature of the subject itself. In contrast when a taboo theme is presented in an accepting setting we are confronted by the intimacy and beauty of the subject. Alongside its delicate imagery, the lack of background draws the viewers eye into the centre focal point of the scene - emphasizing their intertwined silhouette. I personally think this simplistic style also highlights the couple's romance, pointing to the idea of everything else disappearing or 'melting away' during this moment where their love is fully embodied.
In contrast it could be argued that this illustration is a rather 'timid' representation of gay love, steering closer to a heteronormative narrative. The two figures at first glance could easily resemble a heterosexual couple, with the left clearly presenting more masculine in both his appearance and stance. Not only is this character larger in size, detailed by the comparison of their feet and hands, his body is positioned over his partner, suggesting a certain dominance and power. Beside lays the second character, who fulfils the more feminine 'role', their smaller hands and feet - connoting a more fragile and delicate figure. To expand on this analysis, we can also look at the colors used to illustrate these characters, such as the fairer skin being used for the more feminine presenting figure. Fairer skin is seen as a typical symbol of purity and goodness - used predominantly in religious images for angelic characters - and further influencing our prejudices as we continually favor euro centric features as a feminine or beautiful trait.
In a contemporary context it could be criticized that Miyagawa is playing into such stereotypes within this image, perpetuating the belief that homosexual relationships are mere mimics of the stereotyped man and woman - a parallel Adam and Eve. Why do his characters assume these traditional roles of the masculine and the feminine? It can be argued that this undermines the characters themselves, as they become merely a reflection of their gender stereotype - by fulfilling these expectations, a certain tangible aspect of their narrative has been lost. This once intimate scene of a romance now illustrates itself to be a puppet show for the viewer, but I believe this is placing too high of an expectation on the representations of gay romance from mainstream 17th century art.
To look at the context of the inspiration for these characters I only managed to find one source online, at 'commons.wikipedia.org', which describes the scene and provides an insight into who these characters could be. According to this site, this image from the 'Spring Pastimes' collection is described as: “nanshoku type relationship between samurai and their boyfriends”.
Regardless of the criticisms that could be made on the character's appearance in this scene I maintain the belief that this illustration is undoubtedly one of the most beautiful representations of love I have seen. The image of their embrace and each of their figure creates such a personal scene, one I find most memorable and comforting, also reminds me of one of my favorite pieces of art - Gustav Klimt's 'The Kiss'. Klimt, born in 1862, painted 'The Kiss' between 1907 and 1908, and it has become his most famous artwork, described as a masterpiece from the Art Nouveau period.
This 1900s oil painting stunning imagery and warm atmosphere is truly unforgettable, however I am most drawn to the softness of the couples embrace in both these images. Perhaps the use of the gold and yellow in both these images emphasizes the warmth and glow of love, which I would argue becomes embodied by the viewer. Like 'Spring Pastimes', 'The Kiss' clearly depicts two figures with a 'distinct duality between the masculine and feminine'. Not only does the left figure's height and stance over the right emphasize a definite powerful and strong stance, something we associate with the masculine, but almost exactly like Miyagawa's work even the colors used for each respective figure can be analyzed in terms of the feminine and masculine. Once again, the darker skin is used for the masculine presenting figure, in contrast to the 'porcelain' skin and delicate features of the feminine character.
Another aspect of both these paintings I am drawn to is their 'flatness' and 2D style, perhaps a reminder of my own more cartoonish work. I believe the images both maintain the focus on the two figures themselves, rather than the lighting and surrounding scenery. As a viewer our eye spends less time discovering the paintings perspective and realism, and instead maintains an almost breakable stare with the embrace in front of us. Despite the obvious intricacy and detail of Klimt's heavily adorned painting, the viewer, or at least myself, is continually drawn back to looking at the faces and hands of the couple - perhaps explaining why this image feels so memorable to me.
Similar to 'Spring Pastimes', Klimt's 'The Kiss' is arguably a controversial image, depending on how you perceive the dynamic between the couple. According to 'artincontext.org' Klimt was criticized for 'erotic symbolism' throughout his painting, before he painted 'The Kiss'. This article also describes Gustav Klimt's as a pioneer and influencer during this early 1900s European Symbolism and Art Nouveau due to his 'unashamed exploration of raw human sensuality and emotionality', which beautifully details the aspects of both Klimt and Miyagawa's work that I am drawn to. This captivating tenderness of physical touch that they describe as 'human sensuality' is what I find most memorable from these images, the delicate embrace of their figures and the soft touch of their skin. I also believe the flatness of these paintings emphasizes their closeness, insinuating a complete lack of distance between them. Almost as though they are one entity together, an echo of the cliche é phrase, they fit like two pieces of the same puzzle.
Similarly, this flatness and stylized background introduces the idea that these two figures are all that exist in their artwork's universe. I believe we subconsciously realize this couple in-front of us are all that exist, in each other eyes, and within the painting itself and further suggest the theme of each person being entirely infatuated with the others presence. Perhaps this explains why I love these two paintings so dearly. When I look at this couple there is nothing to distract me or tear my eyes away, and it lets me believe these characters are similarly captivated with each other. If this delicate love exists infant of my eyes, in such a simple and human way, then perhaps it is a comforting notion that this is not just a piece of fiction.
When I began this essay, I had a more ambitious exception to be able to explore various examples of Shunga artwork and look at multiple taboos in each. However, as I neared the end of my word count, I believed it may be better to focus solely on this extract of Miyagawa Issaho's 'Spring Pastimes' collection. In hindsight I would chose a painting, or artist, with a wider range of sources available for research, however I undoubtedly enjoyed the task of searching for small pieces online that I may not have seen before. Unfortunately, the downside of this is a lot of references to Wikipedia, as nearly all the articles on that website only had one or two references at most-which cut a lot of my research short at dead ends. Yet throughout this I believe I have managed to construct my own analysis none of his works and it has without a doubt ignited a magnificent respect and admiration for Miyagawa and his work. It was also perfect that this essay managed to link so beautifully into a comparison of Gustav Klimt's work, which is something I had not planned or anticipated at all. I am still pondering a more fitting title for this essay but for now I shall leave it how I began, for without that title I would not have reached this conclusion, so perhaps it is very fitting indeed.
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