Wednesday, April 23, 2014

MOUSE LAMP: By Takeuchi Keishu

Mouse Lamp by Takeuchi Keishu. C.1909.



This is one of the best known designs by the artist, entitled the Mouse Lamp. It was designed for the Bungei Kurabu novel Akatsuki (Dawn) in Vol.18, No.1. Hertr, a young woman reads a letter by an oil lamp. A mouse on top of the lamp also seems to read the letter over her shoulder.
Kuchi-e (frontispiece illustrations) were made for the popular literary magazines largely aimed at the female readers in the Meiji-Taisho period; published by newly established publishers such as Bungei Kurabu, Shunyodo and Suzando. These publishing companies, among which Chuo-koronsha, Kodansha, Shinchosha still exist, published not only literary subjects but also many different everyday subjects such as cooking, sewing and hobbies as monthly publications.


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