“Demon Procession”
One Hundred Pictures by Kyōsai (暁斎百図, Kyōsai Hyakuzu)
Kawanabe Kyōsai — “100 Days of Sermons... Out the Back”
Kawanabe Kyōsai — “Demon Procession”
河鍋暁斎《鬼隊行列》, ca. 1863–1866
From the series: One Hundred Pictures by Kyōsai (暁斎百図, Kyōsai Hyakuzu)
Format: individual sheet from the original accordion-bound edition
Publisher: Wakasaya Yoichi (若狭屋与市)
Dimensions: approx. 13 × 18 cm
Medium: polychrome woodblock print (nishiki-e), printed on handmade washi paper
Scene OverviewA grotesquely comic festival scene: a lively procession of masked figures carries a giant oni (demon) head mounted on a platform. Participants wear flamboyant festival costumes, beat drums, wave fans, and march with exaggerated gestures.
Above them, aristocratic onlookers — ladies in layered kimono and a parasol-bearing samurai — observe from a raised veranda. The composition emphasizes a performative duality: those below act, those above watch. The sacred has become spectacle.
Text & TranslationTitle at left:
鬼隊行列 (Onitai Gyōretsu) — “Demon Procession”
狂斎画 (Kyōsai ga) — “drawn by Kyōsai”
Seal:
Square red artist seal (partially blurred, standard “Kyōsai” 印)
Cultural Context and InterpretationKyōsai here deconstructs religious and societal symbolism. The demon — once a terrifying figure — is paraded for amusement. This inversion signals a breakdown of traditional hierarchies: terror becomes theater, ritual becomes farce.
The elite’s passive observation of this grotesque procession underscores a key theme in Kyōsai’s satire: the spectacle of power is upheld by those who watch, not only those who perform. This image critiques how society neutralizes danger by aestheticizing it.
Key features of the original edition:
Genre and SignificanceGenre: satirical matsuri-e, grotesque religious parody, oni-themed fantasy
Style: anti-authoritarian realism, post-ukiyo-e grotesquerie
Significance: rare early example of Kyōsai’s critique of spectacle, ritual, and hierarchy
Market rarity: high — especially for first-edition sheets in strong condition
河鍋暁斎《鬼隊行列》, ca. 1863–1866
From the series: One Hundred Pictures by Kyōsai (暁斎百図, Kyōsai Hyakuzu)
Format: individual sheet from the original accordion-bound edition
Publisher: Wakasaya Yoichi (若狭屋与市)
Dimensions: approx. 13 × 18 cm
Medium: polychrome woodblock print (nishiki-e), printed on handmade washi paper
Scene OverviewA grotesquely comic festival scene: a lively procession of masked figures carries a giant oni (demon) head mounted on a platform. Participants wear flamboyant festival costumes, beat drums, wave fans, and march with exaggerated gestures.
Above them, aristocratic onlookers — ladies in layered kimono and a parasol-bearing samurai — observe from a raised veranda. The composition emphasizes a performative duality: those below act, those above watch. The sacred has become spectacle.
Text & TranslationTitle at left:
鬼隊行列 (Onitai Gyōretsu) — “Demon Procession”
- 鬼 (oni) = demon
- 隊 (tai) = troop, squad
- 行列 (gyōretsu) = procession, parade
狂斎画 (Kyōsai ga) — “drawn by Kyōsai”
Seal:
Square red artist seal (partially blurred, standard “Kyōsai” 印)
Cultural Context and InterpretationKyōsai here deconstructs religious and societal symbolism. The demon — once a terrifying figure — is paraded for amusement. This inversion signals a breakdown of traditional hierarchies: terror becomes theater, ritual becomes farce.
The elite’s passive observation of this grotesque procession underscores a key theme in Kyōsai’s satire: the spectacle of power is upheld by those who watch, not only those who perform. This image critiques how society neutralizes danger by aestheticizing it.
- Connection to Broader GenresSatirical matsuri-e (festival prints)
- Grotesque parody in the lineage of Toba-e
- Oni-e and yōkai-e visual traditions
- Social inversion: subversion of ritual and class dynamics
Key features of the original edition:
- Accordion-bound format (binding trace on right edge)
- Hand-applied mineral pigments (vermilion, indigo, ochre)
- Loose calligraphic titling
- No publisher mark or standardized block design (unlike later Okura Magobei reprints)
Genre and SignificanceGenre: satirical matsuri-e, grotesque religious parody, oni-themed fantasy
Style: anti-authoritarian realism, post-ukiyo-e grotesquerie
Significance: rare early example of Kyōsai’s critique of spectacle, ritual, and hierarchy
Market rarity: high — especially for first-edition sheets in strong condition