Stand-in Fugen

Also known as: Courtesan Riding an Elephant (Parody of the Bodhisattva Fugen)

About the Artwork

Here, a woman dressed as a man replaces Fugen, a bodhisattva—a being among those considered enlightened in Buddhism—who symbolizes learning as a path to awakening and typically rides an elephant. The painting teaches the lesson of impermanence through the petals falling from the lotus flower the woman holds. It also alludes to the legend of Eguchi, a 12th-century courtesan who, following an encounter with a Buddhist monk-poet called Saigyō, revealed herself to be a manifestation of Fugen.

Inscriptions

artist's signature and two seals, lower right.

Provenance

(Nathan Chaikin, Switzerland, sold to Mr. and Mrs. Kelvin Smith) ?–1985: The Kelvin Smith Collection, Cleveland, OH, given by Mrs. Kelvin [Eleanor Armstrong] Smith [1899–1998] to the Cleveland Museum of Art 1985–: The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH

Exhibition history

Ukiyo-e: Floating World. The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH (June 11-September 2, 1973). A Private World: Japanese and Chinese Art from the Kelvin Smith Collection. The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH (organizer) (September 14-November 13, 1988). Japan’s Floating World 日本の浮世. The Cleveland Museum of Art (organizer) (April 8-October 9, 2022).

Quick Overview

Artist: Kitao Masayoshi (Japanese, 1761–1824)
Date: late 1700s–early 1800s
Medium: hanging scroll; ink and color on silk
Dimensions: Painting only: 114.3 x 56.2 cm (45 x 22 1/8 in.); Including mounting: 186.7 x 76.2 cm (73 1/2 x 30 in.)
Type: Painting
Classification: Painting
Department: Japanese Art
Credit line: The Kelvin Smith Collection, given by Mrs. Kelvin Smith
Accession no.: 1985.277

Data retrieved from the Cleveland Museum of Art on October 8, 2026. The museum may have updated its record since.