Takahashi Hiroaki (Shōtei) (Japan, 1871-1945) Print, dai oban tate-e, Beauty in front of a mirror. Signed Hiroaki and stamped Hiroaki. Publisher Fusui Gabō (Fusui workshop) and stamp. Circa 1927. Size 42.3 x 28.5 cm The contours are reinforced by embossing. This print belongs to the category of bijin-ga (Images of beautiful women) representing the attributes and fashion of the moga, short for modan garu ' Modern Girl '. Their most representative characteristic is their short, boyish haircut. Moga women were educated and independent. From the early 1920s to the 1930s, Japanese women emancipated themselves from their traditional roles as mothers, wives and daughters. Many artists saw the moga theme as an opportunity to depict the habits and customs of the bijin, but some works also illustrated the pleasures of the moga lifestyle. Rightly so, the decadence of enjoying the here and now of an ephemeral, floating world is in fact the very nature of ukiyo-e. Reference: A similar print in the Brooklyn Museum, no. 68.35.11