Born 1822 in Edo (now Tokyo), Japan, Utagawa Yoshitsuya was a master of ukiyo-e printing and a star student of Utagawa Kuniyoshi. Like Kuniyoshi, Yoshitsuya was renowned for his illustrations of warriors as animals and caricatures to represent political events to avoid censorship. His style was characterized by dynamic figures exhibited with studied realism. With fine, detailed lines, he was able to pack gorgeously elaborate graphics into minute vignettes.