Firefly

A young woman dressed in a cooling after bath shift, hangs up a mosquito net, all while a single firefly zips by -— an image that captures a single moment in time. There are other examples of a beauty shown with a mosquito net, such as Utamaro's more voluptuous forms, but here the painter has turned toward a more sophisticated image on the theme. Lily patterns were not common onbath shifts during the Tenmei era (1781–1789), and thus their use here might reflect a contemporary Art Nouveau touch in Shôen’s choice of motif. The narrow obi tied to the side is a style worn before retiring for the night, yet another example of the painter's careful and detailed observation.