Takehisa Yumeji
A poet and painter representative of Taisho romanticism. With his Yumeji-style paintings of beautiful women and elegant graphic designs, he dominated the art of a whole generation
1884-1934
Takehisa Yumeji was a painter, poet, and designer from the Meiji era to the Showa era. He was born into the family of a sake dealer in Honjo Village, Oku County, Okayama Prefecture (present-day Oku-cho in Setouchi City). His original given name was Mojiro. At age 18 he went to Tokyo and enrolled in Waseda Vocational School. While still in school, he interacted with the critic Shimamura Hogetsu and the socialists Kotoku Shusui and Arahata Kanson, and began to paint space-filling illustrations for newspapers and magazines. At age 22 he dropped out of Waseda to devote himself entirely to his art. During this period he began to establish himself as a painter by continuing to paint space-fillers, as well as illustrations for postcards.
Compiling his space-fillers into a book, he published his first book of paintings in 1909 under the title Yumeji gashu: Haru no kan (Illustrations by Yumeji: Spring) with the publishing house Rakuyodo. His paintings of slender beauties with somber expressions, dressed in kimono bearing elegant designs, took the country by storm, and the book became a bestseller. Seizing this opportunity, he began publishing books that he wrote and illustrated, one after another. In 1912 he held his first single-artist exhibition. In 1914 he opened a shop called Minatoya Picture Book Shop, which his wife, Kishi Tamaki, managed. He also created original designs for products such as chiyogami (patterned paper), envelopes, kimono collars, obi, and yukata (bathrobes), and these items became especially popular among female students.
He became involved in a wide range of illustration and design jobs, such as covers for Senoo gakufu (Senoo Music Scores; Senoo Music Publishers) and Fujin gurafu (Women's Graphics; International Information Publishers), illustrations for children's periodicals, and graphic illustrations for books. He also produced many literary pieces, most notably, Chinese poetry.
Related People, Things and Events
Books
Related Works
Noh and kyogen plays on the subject of Ariwara no Narihira
Book designs and cover illustrations
Posters
Paintings drawn by hand
Historical audio records of Yoimachigusa (“Evening Primrose”) lyrics by Yumeji Takehisa
Past Exhibitions
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Institutions Holding Related Materials
The National Diet Library (NDL), founded in 1948, is the library which belongs to the Diet. The NDL assists the activities of the National Diet. The Library collects and conserves materials and information both from Japan and abroad, serving as a foundation of knowledge and culture and providing library services to administrative and judicial entities and Japanese citizens.
昭和56年に伊香保温泉に開館した竹久夢二の美術館。蔵造りの館内では、伊香保ゆかりの夢二の作品や資料をはじめ、美人画、子ども絵、商業デザイン、本の装丁、スケッチ帳など多彩な資料を鑑賞できる。
平成2年に東京・本郷に開館した竹久夢二の美術館。創設者・鹿野琢見が蒐集した幅広いジャンルの夢二コレクションの中から、常時約200～250点を展示。夢二の生涯や芸術からさまざまなテーマを採り上げて、内容を深く掘り下げ、希少な資料とともに紹介している。
平成12年に湯涌温泉に開館した、竹久夢二の作品や遺品などを展示する美術館。年間3～4回の企画展を開催し、さまざまな視点から夢二の作品を紹介する。
版画家・川西英が蒐集した320点に及ぶ竹久夢二コレクションをはじめとする、夢二の作品・資料を多数所蔵。常設展示は行なっていないが、企画展などで作品を公開。
竹久夢二の故郷岡山県にある、夢二作品を専門に収蔵した日本で最初の美術館。肉筆画や屏風などの貴重な作品を含む夢二コレクションは、日本最大の規模を誇る。年4回の企画展では、テーマにあわせて100点以上の作品を展示。
岡山県瀬戸内市にある、築約250年の夢二の生家を「夢二生家記念館」として公開。故郷をテーマにした所蔵作品を季節ごとに展示する。「少年山荘」は、夢二が晩年に自ら設計したアトリエ兼住居を次男・不二彦氏監修のもと忠実に復元。夢二の人生・音楽・デザインをテーマにした展示を行ない、全7室を公開。
External Links
External Links
夢二郷土美術館（岡山県）のホームページ内に、竹久夢二の年譜を掲載。
京都国立近代美術館の所蔵する竹久夢二関連の資料の情報を閲覧できる。
国内外の機関から提供された竹久夢二関連の画像を検索できる。
References
- 日立デジタル平凡社,平凡社
- 平凡社
- 竹久夢二美術館 監修,河出書房新社
- [竹久夢二] [画],石川桂子, 谷口朋子 編著,六耀社