Hand Jive

​This woodblock print, Suzuki Harunobu’s “Two Lovers Playing the Same Shamisen,” (c. 1768) is an example of Japanese Ukiyo-e, “pictures of the floating world,” pleasurable images of the demi-monde, actors, landscapes, and the everyday. Note the subtle X composition of their bodies, from upper left to lower right, upper right to lower left, following the neck of the instrument. Behind them, the rim of the pond draws a soft diagonal, drawing our attention to their faces. How remarkable the couple is—playing one instrument together, with a single hand each. Symbolic of their loving, harmonious relationship? Of course, you’ve noticed that each lover has slipped off one piece of footwear. Where are their other two hands?