Shunshosai Hokucho

Shunshosai Hokuchō was a Japanese ukiyo-e woodblock print artist active in the Osaka area during the first half of the nineteenth century. He was a member of the Shunkōsai Fukushū school of artists, and studied under Shunkōsai Hokushū. His original surname was Inoue, and he used the gō art names Shunsho, Hokuchō, Inoue Shunshosai.
As an Osaka-based artist, Hokuchō's works are categorized as kamigata-e, a term used to distinguish prints produced in the Kamigata area from those produced in Edo. Kamigata-e were predominantly kabuki-e images of kabuki actors, and were produced almost exclusively by amateur “talented kabuki fans” promoting their favourite actors rather than professional print designers.