Object number2008.19.22

Desperate Battle of Captain Asakawa at Tuchengzi

Date1895

Artist Kobayashi Kiyochika (Japanese, 1847-1915)

CultureJapanese

MediumWoodblock print (nishiki-e); ink and color on paper

DimensionsSheet: 14 9/16 x 9 13/16 in. (37 x 25 cm)
Overall (tate-e oban triptych): 14 9/16 x 28 9/16 in. (37 x 72.6 cm)

Credit LineGift of Frances Beatty Adler, class of 1970, and Allen Adler

Period19th c (Meiji period)

Classification(s)

SignedSigned: Kiyochika; (sealed: Kiyochika)

Vassar Exhibitions

Bunmei Kaika: Political Landscape in Early Modern and Modern Japan

Label TextJapanese artists portrayed Chinese and Russian enemy forces in different manners. Chinese soldiers appeared as cowardly and foreign in Kobayashi Kiyochika’s dehumanizing portrayal of Chinese forces in Desperate Battle of Captain Asakawa at Tuchengzi (top). Mounted on his horse, Asakawa looms over Chinese soldiers dressed in their traditional uniforms. Their fearful, exaggerated facial expressions look weak in comparison to the resolute gazes of the advancing Japanese forces. These visual cues reflect how prints were used as propaganda tools to foster Japanese patriotism by dehumanizing non-Western enemy forces, emphasizing successes, and positioning Japanese forces as on par with the West.

Terms

Object information is a work in progress and may be updated as new research findings emerge. To help improve this record, please email loebcollections@vassar.edu