Mat Maker

Reproduction from a set of paintings called “Shokunin ezukushi” (職人絵尽/A Collection of Pictures of Artisans), which consists of 24 pieces, painted on screens, which are kept in the Kitain (喜多院; temple) at Kawagoe, in Saitama Prefecture. The paintings are attributed to Tosa Mitsuoki (土佐光起), who was appointed “Sakon-Shogen” early in the era of Genroku and made Chief of the Painting Bureau.

Vertically rectangular multicoloured print depicting two men sitting in the yard of a mat maker workshop, working on mats and barrels, a woman walking out of the house carrying a barrel of water, and a small child clutching the breast of a woman sitting on a bench. Through the open window can be seen a man leaning over a screen, and another child.