Artist – YOSHIHARU (芳春) (1828-1888), was a Japanese ukiyo-e artist, and book designer, had been producing an enormous number of different subjects, and in his later years had been working even as an illustrator for Konohana newspaper (此花新聞) in Osaka (大坂).

It has been said that YOSHIHARU actually wanted to become a kabuki actor and to study with Nakamura Shikan (四代目中村芝翫), but his adopted father was opposed to this. Thus he instead became at first pupil of Yanagawa Shigenobu-II (二代目 柳川重信; 1797-1859), later started his career as pupil of Utagawa Kuniyoshi (歌川国芳). There he adopted the ga-name 'Utagawa YOSHIHARU' (歌川 芳春), just in order to reveal that he was part of the tradition of the Utagawa school following Kuniyoshi. He produced bijin-ga, kaika-e, musha-e, omocha-e and many other kinds of prints. One of YOSHIHARUS most well known triptych depicts a Western circus performance named 'The Great Circus from France'. He was known and befriended with a multitude of contemporary artists like Gengyo Baisote (梅素玄魚), Kanagaki Robun (仮名垣魯文), Yoshiiku Ochiai (落合芳幾), Yoshitomi Utagawa (歌川芳州), Yoshimune Arai (新井芳宗), Shimaji Wakanaya (若菜屋島次), Hiko Kubota (久保田彦), and others.

Personal life - Little is known about the life of YOSHIHARU. He was born under the real name of IKUSABURO Ikuta (育三郎 生田). He lived at first in Asakusa Kayamachi (浅草茅町), in 1879 moved to Asakusa Namikichi (浅草並木町), and in 1880 moved to Eku-Cho (栄久町). He died in his 61st year after a consuming illness on the 5th of February 1888 in his last reported home in Tokyo, Kyobashi Tsukiji-chome 2  (京橋築地2丁目).

Aliases - In addition to his go name Utagawa YOSHIHARU (歌川 芳春), he used Ichimonosai YOSHIHARU (一物斎芳晴), and the the gō-epithets like Chōkarō /Askarō ( 朝華楼), Ichiminesai (一峰斎),  Ichumesai (一梅斎), Ichibaisai /Ichibanasai (一梅斎), Ikkissai,  Ikkitsusai,   Ikuta Ikusaburo (生田 育三郎), and  Ippōsai (一峰斎) in variable combinations. Utagawa Ikasaburō (歌川幾三郎) and Yoshiharu Ikuta (芳春 生田) have also been reported.

Disciples - Known disciples are Utagawa Harutomi ((歌川 春富), and  Utagawa Harunaka ((歌川 春中).