The Soul of the Good Thief (L'âme du bon Larron)

Kyosai studied many different types of painting and borrowed freely from varied sources when creating his own, innovative print designs. He shared his expertise in Japanese art history in his Treatise on Painting, which offers an analysis of various painting styles and schools as well as discussions of his place within those traditions. The volumes offer a valuable glimpse of how Meiji period artists understood their own artistic heritage.

Kyosai spent only two years training in the studio of Kuniyoshi (from age seven to nine), but his time there made a profound impression on the young artist, who later excelled in creating heroic subjects like those of his master. In a double-page illustration, Kyosai depicts himself as a child in Kuniyoshi’s studio, receiving tutelage while surrounded by a chaotic scene of playful cats and buffoonish older artists. In another double-page spread, Kyosai traces the signature traits of the Utagawa figural style.