Japan Flashcards
Grand Shrine of Ise, Mie Prefecture, Last rebuilt 1993
Shinto- religion centered on family, village devotion to kami (coined w/ arrival of Buddhism), became systematized w/ shrines, hierarchy of deities, regulated ceremonies
Great Shinto monument- closed to public- only imperial family & Shinto priests; made of wood, ritualistically re-built every 20 years
Sun Goddess Amaterasu-o-mi- kami worshipped - progenitor of imperial family
like Egyptians- Sun god Ra- impregnates Queen, appearing in guise of husband; Christian tradition- God incarnate in flesh
inner shrine + smaller subsidiary shrines
Kami ceremonially escorted to freshly copied shrine, old dismantled
embodies central tenet of Shinto- ritual purification in cycle of seasons; architecture- wooden piles elevated building- thatched roof held in place by horizontal logs; unpainted cypress wood; natural simplicity (design from granaries)
Horyuji Compound, Nara Prefecture. Asuka period, 7th century CE
oldest wooden temple in world- showcases Chinese ideas brought to Japan; re-built after 670 fire; laid out in grid like Forbidden City- rectangular courtyard surrounded by covered corridors around lecture hall, library, belfry, dormitories, pagoda, kondo (golden hall for worship & ceremonies); like European monastery; entrance like Propylaia- gatehouse of Greek acropolis
pagoda- 5 stories, serves as reliquary- not entered- Japanese extend bracketing system (elements projecting from wall supporting broad eaves of tiled roofs- standard element in Asian architecture in future- palaces & temples)
Hungry Tigress Jataka, Panel of the Tamamushi Shrine, Horyuji. Asuka period, c. 650 CE.
part of Tamamushi shrine- lacquer on wood
painting on side- Jataka tales from former lives of Buddha- continuous narrative
sacrificed life to save starving tigress & cubs: 1) hangs shirt on tree; 2) dives down
tigress too weak to eat him so he jumps off cliff to break open flesh, sacrifices his life
style filtered from China through Korea- International Buddhist style- slender figures, stylized cliffs, trees, bamboo
Womb World Mandala, Heian period, late 9th century CE
represents (Esoteric) Tantric Buddhism: historical Buddha unimportant, most revered was universal Buddha, Dainichi (“Great Sun”)
accompanied by buddhas, bodhisattvas & guardian deities (relationships illustrated in mandala- cosmic diagrams- perfect circle/square motif)
like Hinduism- polytheistic- central deity surrounded by subsidiaries/ Mesoamerica- symmetry
Dainichi surrounded by 4 buddhas of 4 directions; surrounded by other deities w/ symbols of individual power; wrathful deities engulfed in flames- bottom
religion for aristocracy- hierarchy- rituals parallel social divisions of Heian court
The Tale of Genji, Scene from the Kashiwagi chapter. Heian period, 12th century CE.
lady-in-waiting Lady Murasaki wrote on lifestyle of Heian aristocrats, world’s 1st novel- for amusement of fellow court ladies; stories of Prince Genji & companions- theme: fleeting pleasures=ultimate sadness in life, Buddhist view of vanity of earthly pleasures; one of the earliest Japanese secular paintings, bird’s eye perspective; court figures in architectural settings, mood conveyed w/ props- plants, partitions; handscroll- scenes alternating b/w text, delicate lines, assymmetrical
emotion not on faces; conveyed through colors, poses, fluttering curtains, overall composition
Prince Genji- holds baby born from wife, Nyosan (fathered by another noble); Genji himself unfaithful, true father is dead; Genji himself illegitimate son of emperor- irony & sorrow
humans small in size; scene dominated by wall, curtains- squeezes into corner- psychological compression
text portion- handscroll written in kana script- also used for Japanese poetry
Book Page From The Ishiyama-gire (Dispersed Volumes, Once Owned By The Ishiyama Temple, Of The Anthology Of The Thirty-six Immortal Poets) Heian period, early 12th century CE.
Ink w/ gold and silver on decorated and collaged paper; most popular Japanese poetry, gathered together, bound in albums; most famous known as Thirty-Six Immortal Poets, anthology
survive in individual sections, separated volumes called Ishiyama-gine (Ishiyama fragments after temple that owned original volume)
show tradition & aesthetic of Japanese- interest in simple, flowing letters, interspersed w/ more complex Chinese characters, distinctive asymmetry
poem seems to float- dyed papers decorated w/ block printing, particles of gold & silver; two verses by courtier Ki no Tsurayuki- association b/w women and natural imagery; figures complement themes of love lost/court scandal, read R to L
Attributed to Toba Sojo, Scene from Frolicking Animals, Heian period, 12th century CE.
another style of yamato-e: bold, confident strokes, little color, subjects outside of court; like Chinese minimalist literate style; satirizes human behavior through animal antics (long history in art: Sumerian sound box, Aesop’s fables in Greece, late medieval marginalia- humor employed to affirm status quo of appropriate roles)
monkey robed as monk- chants incantations, offers peach branch on altar; frog on lotus leaf in Buddha-like pose (Amitabha Buddha); rabbits, monkey, foxes, frog as monastic & secular worshippers, some bored, distracted; exact meaning unknown
Night Attack On The Sanjo Palace, Kamakura period, late 13th century
new world of Samurai dominates secular art, handscrolls w/ink & colors on paper
1160: 500 Minamoto rebels- daring raid on Sanjo palace- surprise attack in middle of night, abducted emperior; battles primarily fought by mounted & armored warriors, bows & arrows, swords
sense of eyewitness account, rapid lively brushwork- like literati (Toba Sojo) captures immediacy, violence, destruction
“bird’s eye view”- taken from Tale of Genji; isometric projection- roofs do not converge at distance
Kosho, Kuya Preaching, Kamakura period, before 1207
painted wood w/ inlaid eyes- Pure Land Buddhism- most popular still in Japan- new sects founded to promote ideology- appealed to all levels of populace
Itinerant monk Kuya (903-972) famous for urging country folk to join in singing chants to Buddha Amida; converted to Buddhism after slaying a deer; holds staff w/ deer horns, traveling clothes, gong
chant: 6 small carved buddhas emerging from mouth, one for each syllable: N-mu-A-mi-da-Bu (tsu)- chanting phrase ensures re-birth, even just one sincere invocation= Western paradise
Descent Of Amida And The Twenty-five Bodhisattvas, Kamakura period, 13th century CE
hanging scroll w/ colors & gold on silk; illustrates Western Pure Land Buddhism literally
popular painting= raigo (“wwelcoming approach”)- depicts Amida Buddha w/bodhisattvas coming down to earth to welcome dying person in home; person near death holds onto cords- hoping Amida will escort soul directly to paradise
similar to use of rosary in Catholicism; pray for soul to be carried to heaven
unlike complex mandalas of Esoteric Buddhism- straightforward, accessible promise of salvation
kirkane: cut -gold leaf technique- gold paint + thin slivers of gold leaf cut into elaborate patterns- shimmer in light of oil lamps=magical
brings together Shinto + Buddhist beliefs- ancestral kami also descend from mountain
Bunsei, Landscape, Muromachi period, mid 15th century
Zen Buddhism- appealed to self-disciplined spirit of Samurai warriors- last form of Buddhism to reach Japan from mainland through Korea, dominant among elite
monk artist Shubun- Bunsei was follower-trained to become monks- became artists instead
hanging scroll w/ ink & light colors on paper, like Chinese-style Ming landscapes; isolated element in foreground, rocky land overlapping pine tree, rock, poet in hermitage, fence, garden; emptiness in midground (read as water); background- shore & fishing boats; foreground & background echo each other; Zen poetic landscape= pure, lonely, serene, like monk’s life
Sesshu, Winter Landscape, Muromachi period, c. 1470s
hanging scroll w/ ink on paper; another pupil of Shubun, one of greatest Japanese painters, new aesthetic for Japanese court/nobility; he went on diplomatic mission to China- 1467- studied Chinese paintings in Zen monasteries
foreground: lone figure climbing to monastery; background; cliff desends from mist; temples, clothing= contemporary Buddhism
departed from style of his master: reveal effects of civil war- not as naturalistic
further t/w Zhe style- angular strokes, expressive- flat, overlapping planes fracture composition- crystalline facets- like Cubism, like Cezanne- mountain built up in flat geometric planes
Rock Garden, Ryoanji, Kyoto, Muromachi period, c. 1480.
dry landscaped courtyard gardens for contemplation (beg. 15th-16th c.)- large open expanse of rocks
“borrowed scenery”- trees outside (maple, pine, cherry) considered part of garden, add color
center emphasizes severity, emptiness; rocky outcroppings- asymmetrical 15 stones on islands of moss, group of 2, 3, 5; compositions modelled on famoous Chinese landscapes
maintaining= weeding, raking, active meditation- keeps mind grounded in present
intellectualize: isalnds in the sea; mountain peaks; swimming tigress & cubs; constellations
like earlier literati- contemplate nature in garden hermitages
Kano Eitoku, Fusuma, Depicting pine and cranes (left) and plum tree (right) from the central room of the Jukoin, Daitokuji, Kyoto. Momoyama period, c. 1563-1573
temples associated w/ateliers, commissioned murals for grand reception rooms- monks met w/ warrior patrons- decide which kind of art wished to commission
new style- Muromachi ink- paintng- tradition + brightly-colored yamato-e style; fusuma (paper-covered sliding doors) in this style
subject- cranes, pines=symbols of long life; plum tree- symbol of spring, re-birth
island wraps around like continuous picture window
jagged outlines, vigorous brushwork, dramatic compositions= Muromachi+ new sense of scale=Momoyama
Sen no Rikyu Taian Tearoom, Myokian Temple, Kyoto. Momoyama period, 1582.
tea introduced to Japan in 9th c.- Monks used as stimulant in meditation; Sen no Rikyu - most famous tea master, designed intimate gatherings of few people of various backgrounds (e.g. warriors, courtiers, etc.)
small rustic room, quietly discuss utensils, Zen scroll; aesthetic of modesty, refinement, rusticity
designed tiny door- crawl through- natural materials, bamboo, wood; alcove for Zen scroll, mood quiet, light muted
utensils- water jar, kettle, tea scoop, whisk, caddy, tea bowl, ceramics: Japanese admiration for natural asymmetry; like Korean-style rice bowls origially for peasants- now elevated to epitome of refined taste
Chojiro, Tea Bowl, Called Yugure (“Twilight”), Momoyama period, late 16th century.
Founder of Raku family of potters; Raku ware- hand-built, low-fired ceramics- very popular, add glaze to exterior; developed especially for tea ceremony- irregular shape, crackled texture, small foot
glaze-shaded red hue- evoke gentle landscape & setting sun
like Sesshu’s art- Japanese art=natural asymmetry, abstraction, boldness of expression
Suzuki Harunobu, The Flowers Of Beauty In The Floating World: Motoura And Yaezakura Of The Minami Yamasakiya, Edo period, 1769. polychrome woodblock print on paper
representation of urban entertainment districts- where geisha, courtesans work, as in West- entertained men: classical music, dance, games, conversation, allure of what could be (but often not sex)
welcomed foreign goods- imitated foreign customs- user seems more sophisticated, cosmopolitan
telescopes popular- courtesans/customers- sexual overtones (phallic shape)
creates new way of “seeing” in Japanese art; instead of multiple, unfolding viewing angles- more planar organization/recession like in West, demand for more naturalistic painting
mid 18th c. taste of wealthy Kyoto merchants: novel imagery inspired by telescopes, optical devices enhanced 3-D effects of Western perspective
Western shading, perspective+native Japanese decorative style, retain familiarity of subject matter
Katsushika Hokusai, The Great Wave From Thirty-Six Views of Mount Fuji. Edo period, c. 1831.
polychrome wooblock print on paper- artist one of two most famous woodblock printers in Japan, incredibly influential- collected in Western Europe by artists at end of 19th c., created most successful sets of graphic art in world
showcases Mount Fuji in background, cresting wave in foreground w/ snowy crown like foam, visual relationship b/w active wave & steady mountain
example of Nishiki-e (“brocade pictures”)- multiple colored blocks
inspired Japonisme: style appreciated more in West than Japan- e.g. Starry Night by Van Gogh- influenced by this print
understanding of Japanese woodblock prints- awkward cropping, oblique viewing angle, interesting asymmetry, isometric perspective- used to show fleeting notion of modernity by Impressionists
Fukami Sueharu, Sky II, Heisei period, c. 1990
most innovative sculptor; Celadon-glazed porcelain w/ wood base- example of modern Japanese sculpture- roots in Chinese porcelain- pale bluish-green glazes
blue & white wares most famous of Chinese porcelain- also associated w/ Asia generally
made by slip casting- inject liquid clay into mold w/ high pressure compressor
reminiscent of airplane- Japanese made many innovations in flight
takes traditional iconography, techinques + modernist style
like abstract sculpture (e.g. Brancusi)- captures pure form, but tied to tradition- katana (Japanese sword), wooden support=love of natural forms, rusticity, boldness of expression
