Utagawa Kunisada (1786 - January 12; 1865); also known as Utagawa Toyokuni III) was the most popular; prolific and financially successful designer of ukiyo-e woodblock prints in 19th-century Japan. In his own time; his reputation far exceeded that of his contemporaries; Hokusai; Hiroshige and Kuniyoshi.

Surprisingly; not many details of Kunisada's life are recorded; aside from a few well-established events. He was born in 1786 in Honjo; a district of Edo; with the given name Sumida Shogoro IX. His family owned a fairly successful ferry-boat service; and he soon developed an artistic talent as he grew up. So impressive were his early sketches that he caught the eye of Toyokuni; great master of the Utagawa School; who soon took him on as an apprentice.

His skills and renown quickly grew; and he became head of the Utagawa School in 1825; where he would teach and design woodblock prints until his death in 1865; having achieved the largest collection of woodblock prints of any designer in 19th-century Japan.