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Kobayashi Eitaku

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Kobayashi Eitaku (1843-1890), who often went by Sensai Eitaku, frequently contributed to Hasegawa Takejirō’s crepe-paper publications. He specialized in ukiyo-e and nihonga. Born before the Meiji era, he first started his career as an apprentice to Kanō-school painter Kanō Eishin at age twenty-one. He later worked as the official painter for Ii Naosuke of the Ii Clan of Hakone. This move granted Kobayashi samurai status. After Ii’s assassination in 1860, Kobayashi traveled before resettling in Nihonbashi, Tokyo–the place of his birth. He studied briefly under famous printmaker Tsukioka Yoshitoshi (1839-1892) to learn how to produce polychrome prints circa 1870, but the two parted ways after a disagreement. At this time, Kobayashi’s work became more commercial. He not only illustrated crepe-paper books, but also worked as a nishiki-e illustrator for several newspapers, including the Yokohama mainichi shimbun. He created various kinds of illustrations including battle scenes from the Seinan War in 1877. It is likely that Basil Hall Chamberlain provided the introduction between Hasegawa and Kobayashi. Prior to his early death at age forty-eight from lung disease in 1890, Kobayashi completed illustrations for fourteen of the first sixteen fairy tales in Hasegawa’s series.

1. Momotaro
1. Momotaro

David Thompson, Hasegawa Takejirō, Kobayashi Eitaku

2. The Tongue Cut Sparrow
2. The Tongue Cut Sparrow

David Thompson, Kobayashi Eitaku, Nishinomiya Yosaku

3. Battle of the Monkey and the Crab
3. Battle of the Monkey and the Crab

David Thompson, Kobayashi Eitaku, Nishinomiya Yosaku

4. The Old Man Who Made The Dead Trees Blossom
4. The Old Man Who Made The Dead Trees Blossom

David Thompson, Kobayashi Eitaku, Nishinomiya Yosaku

5. Kachi-Kachi Mountain
5. Kachi-Kachi Mountain

David Thompson, Hasegawa Takejirō, Kobayashi Eitaku

6. The Mouse’s Wedding
6. The Mouse’s Wedding

David Thompson, Hasegawa Takejirō, Kobayashi Eitaku

7. The Old Man & The Devils
7. The Old Man & The Devils

Hasegawa Takejirō, James Curtis Hepburn, Kobayashi Eitaku

8. The Fisherboy Urashima
8. The Fisherboy Urashima

Basil Hall Chamberlain, Hasegawa Takejirō, Kobayashi Eitaku

9. The Serpent with Eight Heads
9. The Serpent with Eight Heads

Basil Hall Chamberlain, Hasegawa Takejirō, Kobayashi Eitaku

10. The Matsuyama Mirror
10. The Matsuyama Mirror

Kate James, Kobayashi Eitaku, Nishinomiya Yosaku

11. The Hare of Inaba
11. The Hare of Inaba

Hasegawa Takejirō, Kate James, Kobayashi Eitaku

12. The Cub’s Triumph
12. The Cub’s Triumph

Hasegawa Takejirō, Kate James, Kobayashi Eitaku

14. The Princes Fire-Flash and Fire-Fade
14. The Princes Fire-Flash and Fire-Fade

Hasegawa Takejirō, Kate James, Kobayashi Eitaku, Suzuki Kason

18. The Ogre’s Arm
18. The Ogre’s Arm

Kate James, Kobayashi Eitaku, Nishinomiya Yosaku

19. The Ogres of Oyeyama
19. The Ogres of Oyeyama

Kate James, Kobayashi Eitaku, Nishinomiya Yosaku