About the Artist & Series
Kawanabe Kyōsai (1831–1889) was a prolific and wildly inventive artist of the late Edo to early Meiji era, renowned for his biting satire, mischievous humor, and bold imagination.  Often called the “demon painter,” Kyōsai seamlessly blended classical Japanese aesthetics with caricature, political commentary, and ribald humor.
 
This particular shunga woodblock print series titled The Great Tail (Ō-Shiri Monogatari, c. 1870) is one of Kyōsai’s rare and highly sought-after shunga (erotic art) series.  Unlike the more serene and intimate works of earlier shunga masters, Kyōsai’s approach bursts with energy and comic absurdity.  His figures are exaggerated, animated, and sometimes grotesque—mocking social conventions while celebrating the raw, unrestrained aspects of human desire.
 
This shunga woodblock print series captures Kyōsai’s signature mix of eroticism, wit, and theatrical chaos.  Each image tells a bawdy tale, revealing the artist’s playful rebellion against both artistic and societal norms of his time.  
 
Shunga picture measures 11.5 cm x 17.5 cm.  Good colors and impressions.  Decent+ condition with some wear, soiling, bit of creasing, album backing on reverse.
 
A Riotous Gay Procession
Kyōsai unleashes pure chaos in this all-male parade of flesh, where bodies pile together in drunken exhilaration.  Naked men scramble over one another, forming a living chain of lust and laughter.  One waves a fan, another beats a drum, while a robed figure theatrically “conducts” the fevered march.
 
Entirely homoerotic, this scene celebrates male desire without restraint—mocking rigid social norms while reveling in the playful, primal energy of shared intimacy.  Kyōsai’s loose, spontaneous lines heighten the sense of movement and abandon, making it both humorous and boldly erotic.