Mario B. Gil

Japanese Art Ukiyo-e Figurative Painting, Takashimayaoisha, Edo period

2014

BIJIN-GA SERIES XVIII (Nº 18) Title: Obvious Love (Arawaruru Koi) This image is part of the bijin-ga series (“Pretty women”) drawn by Mario BGil, based in the Kitigawa Utamaro woodblock print Obvious Love (Arawaruru Koi) (1793-94); 38,8 x 26,2 cm.. Art Institute Chicago, USA. A sensual woman seems to care little that her kimono is open, exposing a breast. Her hair is in disarray , the hairpin at the front about to fall and she holds one of the hairpins in her left hand. She appears to be looking down outside the frame of the picture, perhaps in mid-conversation. The term “arawaruru” refers to a love so wholehearted that it expresses itself in the lover´s face and mannerisms. In the 1780's and 90's the publisher Tsutaya Juzaburo and the designer Kitagawa Utamaro worked together on the production of many woodblock prints, most of them of the bijin-ga type. One of their most popular productions was a set of images that purported to depict psychological classifications of women - 'fickle', 'interesting', etc.. Perhaps in response to this success, they then came up with something similar - a set of prints...

Bijing-Ga series XXVII (Nº 27) Title: Tomomoto Toyohina Tomimoto Toyohina was a much sought-after geisha (entertainer) who performed narrative ballads accompanied by the shamisen. She was one of several non-prostitute beauties, including teahouse waitresses, whom Utamaro depicted repeatedly in the early to mid 1790s. She appears here with a brush in hand, dressed and combed with simple elegance. This composition is from a six-print series comprising half-length portraits of famous beauties (Famous beauties of Edo). Utamaro elevated Tomimoto Toyohina to the status of one of the three most renowned beauties of her age (together with Okita and Ohisa). She was from a prominent family of musicians that provided entertainment in the Yoshiwara. Toyohina’s appeal undoubtedly was as much due to her appearance as to her skills in singing, and Utamaro’s celebration of her would have further elevated the status of an already well-known lineage. This image is part of the bijin-ga series (“Pretty women”) drawn by Mario BGil, based in the Kitigawa Utamaro woodblock print...

Bijin-ga series XXI (Nº 21) Title: The courtese Hinakoto of the Hyôgorô House of Edo The courtesan Hinakoto is depicted by smoking tobacco. She takes the pipe delicately in her left hand and, in her right hand, she seems to be holding a “uchiwa” (rigid hand fan) that comes out from the bottom of the drawing, decorated with written calligraphy. Some strands of hair that fall on her temple and her scant clothing show that the painter has surprised her in a relaxed moment in which she does not lose her elegance and slenderness. This image is part of the bijin-ga series (“Pretty women”) drawn by Mario BGil, based in the Kitigawa Utamaro woodblock print...

Bijin-ga series II (nº 02) Title: “Hairdresser” The interest in this picture is focused on the hairstyles of both women, a hairdresser leaning forward with a bow of intense black color, arranging his client's especially long hair. The ways of gripping both the hair and the comb, making it slide through the ocher-scented kimono of the customer, decorated with sea stars, stand out. Highlighting with great detail the drawing of loose hair on the obi of white lines on a red background, and the kosode of plum color. This image is part of the Bijin-ga Series (“Pretty women”) drawn by Mario BGil, based in the Kitigawa Utamaro woodblock print "Hairdresser" (1798-1799), 39,8 x 26,8 cm. Museum of Fine Arts. Boston-USA. Utamaro drawn a series of twelve prints whose themes were related to the manual works of women, and this "Hairdresser" is one of them. Mario BGil reproduces the seal of the censor (Kiwame) and writes his own signature, Mario BGil, in Japanese, with the date 14 (2014). The mesaurements of the drawing are 76 x 56 cm. (29,92 x 22,05 in.), with a painted surface of 67 x 49,5 cm. With his work on the bijing-ga series, Mario BGil wanted to embellish, give brilliance and volume to the images presented by japanese artist Kitigawa Utamaro in those beautiful engravings, ennobled with the patina of time, which have served as inspiration. The result obtained is almost life-size portraits, endowed with strong chromaticism and valuable contrasts, all enhanced, in turn, with the volume provided by the weight and rigidity of the paper, and its thick texture (Fabriano Artistico “grana grosso”, 640g/m2; the thickness and hardness of the paper makes it necessary to transport it without rolling). In this way, Mario BGil pays tribute to his admired artist and offers us a new and enriched vision of this popular facet of oriental art from the 18th and 19th centuries. ABOUT THE ARTIST Mario BGil is a self-taught artist who for years has combined his creative activity with his work in the business world, away from commercial art galleries. Man of very diverse interests and great artistic sensitivity, studied Art History and in 2012, a deep interest in oriental art was awakened in him so that he began to study the great masters of Japanese Ukiyo-e prints, who had such an influence on the European avant-garde of the late 19th century. The discovery of Kitagawa Utamaro (1753-1806), a key figure in the metropolitan culture of Edo (now Tokyo), and a point of reference in the history of Japanese engraving...

“Hitomoto of The Daimonjiya in Kyô-Machi Itchôme” Hitomoto holds a bouquet of flowers looking to her left, with a surprised face, and with her mouth aj...

Bijin-ga Series I (Nº1) Title: Karagoto of The Chojiya Head and bust portrait of the beautiful courtesan Karagoto, of the Chojiya House, who appears looking to her left while drying her right ear with the sleeve of her yukata (a fine summer garment, normally made of cotton that was normally used after bathing). The wide sleeve falls from her ear covering her right breast and leaving the left one uncovered. This image is part of the bijin-ga series (“Pretty women”) drawn by Mario BGil, based in the Kitigawa Utamaro woodblock print...

Original drawing by Lauren Rinaldi float mounted in the pictured simple white frame measuring 17in x 14in. Lauren Rinaldi works using unbiased portraits of women’s bodies as a veh...

"Veneer" is an original oil pastel, ballpoint pen, color pencil, and graphite on arches paper work by Lauren Rinaldi. This piece ships in the pictured archival custom frame. The pape...

Milton Clark Avery (1885 - 1965) March Avery in a Beret, 1951 Black crayon and graphite on cream wove paper 11 x 8 3/8 inches Signed and dated lower left; ...

Ink and graphite on paper Signed, dated and entitled lower left

Ink and graphite on paper Signed, entitled and dated below

Ink and graphite on paper Signed, entitled and dated lower right by the artist