You might think Sumo is a sport which has little to do with Art, and you would be wrong ! Derived from Shinto, the religion specific to Japan, Sumo can be traced back to ancient rituals carried out to ensure a bountiful harvest and honor the kami spirits. However, the objective of the fight is straightforward: force the opponent out of the ring (dohyō) or make him touch the ground with any part of the body other than the soles of his feet. There are no weight classes in Sumo!
But, beyond the apparently brutal confrontation between massive fighters (rikishi), Sumo is full of sophistication and even of artistic research… Ukiyo-e artists made no mistakes by representing all facets of Sumo, from training to tournaments fights, with realism as well as humor and commercial savvy, for a public of all ages and sexes…as women, also, were very fond of rikishis!
To learn more about banzuke, look up at:
THE CRAZE FOR BANZUKE (ranking charts) IN 19th CENTURY JAPAN / Blog | Mysterious japanese prints
If you want to learn more about the Satsuma Rebellion, a major episode of Japanese recent history, go to:
ASCENSION ET CHUTE DE SAIGO TAKAMORI / Blog | Mysterious japanese prints
Learn more about satiric Boshin war prints at:
JAPANESE SATIRIC PRINTS AND THE 1868 BOSHIN WAR / Blog | Mysterious japanese prints
Research and writing: Francis Minvielle
Support and preparation of the French version: Franck Girard
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