Shunga (春画) literally translates to Spring pictures due to Spring being a popular euphemism for sex, also seen in the Japanese word for prostitution: baishun (売春, literally sell Spring). However, shunga prints were more than just colorful depictions of sex. Throughout history, they were everything from pornography to talismans and wedding presents, all while remaining the undisputed symbols of Japan’s urban landscape.

The erotic shunga art came out of the ukiyo-e movement which celebrated the lives of merchants, craftsmen, and the like. Or, in other words, Japan’s middle class: ordinary people who liked to have ordinary sex in the privacy of their ordinary homes.

That’s why the majority of shunga scenes are depicted from a low angle. It was a way to figuratively bring the viewer down to the subjects’ level and, as a result, bring them closer to the completely normal act of sex. In short, a lot of shunga images were aiming to normalize sex, in opposition to the somewhat puritanical Confucianism which dominated Japan’s government at the time (and even got the erotic pictures banned throughout the country on a few occasions). In doing so, shunga artists were actually also going back to their cultural roots.

2. Shunga Art in Japanese Culture