Hannya

 

Gihachiro Okuyama

  1907 - 1981 (biography)

early 1950s 

woodblock print 

10 3/4 x 7 15/16" image 

pencil, lower right; seal "Gihachi" in lower right image. 

not stated 

pencil titled in lower margin, annotated in Japanese on left margin; chop within image 

 

Japanese hosho 

published 

artist 

19461 

SOLD

A woodblock print depicting a Hannya mask, used in Japanese Noh theater, representing a jealous female demon or serpent. It possesses two sharp bull-like horns, metallic eyes, and a leering mouth split from ear to ear. Okayama did a series of Noh mask prints in the early 1950's.

The Hannya mask portrays the souls of women who have become demons due to obsession or jealousy. Plays in which a person may wear the hannya mask include Aoi no Ue and D'j'ji; its use in these two plays, two of the most famous of the Noh repertoire, and its distinctive and frightening appearance make it one of the most recognizable Noh masks.