Yoshitoshi’s Strange Tales

Taiso Yoshitoshi (1839-1892) was fascinated by the supernatural, and some of his best work concerns ghosts, monsters, and charming animal transmutations. Yoshitoshi’s strange tales presents two series (with full page illustrations) that focus on his depictions of the weird and magical world of the transformed. The first series is One Hundred Tales of Japan and China (Wakan hyaku monogatari, 1865) and it is based on a game in which people told short scary ghost tales in a darkened room, extinguishing a candle as each tale ended. New Forms of Thirty-six Strange Things (Shinken sanjurokkaisen) of 1889-92 illustrates stories from Japan’s rich heritage of legends in more serene and objective ways.