Chikanobu Youshu

Tenpo 9th (1838) born, Taishō 1st (1912) died
Born in the lower class samurai house, working in Edo of Echigo country Takada clan.
From the young age to become a Ukiyoe painter, he first entered the disciple of Kuniyoshi Utagawa, and when Kuniyoshi passed away, moved to under Toyokuni Utagawa the 3rd generation, and after Toyokuni also died, he entered the disciple in Kunichika Toyohara.

However, as the samurai of the Takada clan, accompanied by the shogunate 's second conquest to the Choshu-clan in the first year of Keio, during the turbulent period of the Tokugawa shogunate, in the Boshin war fought with the government for the shogunate side.

From the beginning of Meiji 10, Chikanobu began drawing again and initially got reputation by painting Samurai and Southwest War pictures.
After that, he began painting many Court arts, and the paintings submitted to the 1st Internal Painting Exhibition Committee in Meiji 15 are rewarded.
The luxurious Nishikie drawn by Chikanobu invited a great reputation as "the return of Edo Ukiyoe".

uch as “Chiyoda no Oooku”, like the pictures such as Tokugawa Oooku and the shogunate events, which could not be drawn in the Edo period, gained popularity. In addition, he was the most popular beauty woman painting artist in the Meiji era, with reputation by painting beautiful women and newly appointed government officers’ wives with western clothes.