Natori Shunsen Actor Prints

Shunsen Natori (????, February 7, 1886 - March 30, 1960) was a Japanese woodblock printer, considered by many to be the last master in the art of kabuki yakusha-e "actor pictures".

He was born Natori Yoshinosuke, the fifth son of a silk merchant, in Yamanashi Prefecture. His family settled in Tokyo shortly after his birth, where he remained until his death in 1960.

From the age of eleven he studied with traditional Nihonga (Japanese-style) painter Kubota Beisen, and was given his artist's name "Shunsen". He subsequently studied at the Tokyo School of Fine Arts.

Natori Shunsen developed an interest in kabuki actor portraits while working as an illustrator for the newspaper Asahi Shimbun. During this time, he had the opportunity to meet the publisher Watanabe Shozaburo, who was the primary force behind the shin-hanga movement.

Natori's actor portraits were mainly in the okubi-e (large head) format which allowed him to focus on the expression and emotions of the character's face.

Natori Shunsen was the last artist to create actor portraits in the traditional Japanese woodcut style. Natori Shunsen was the uncontested master of kabuki actor portraits of the Shin Hanga art movement. At the same time, he was one of the most important artists of the Shin Hanga movement.