art history

JAPAN SHELTERED; LITTLE FOREIGN INTERFERENCE OPENED IN 1854; UKIYO-E PRINTS; FAME IN NINETEENTH CENTURY JAPANESE ARTISTS WORKED ON COMMISSION; FOR RELIGION OR ROYAL COURT MASTERS RAN WORKSHOPS; PAPER AND INK; MASTER CREATED COMPOSITION, ASSISTANTS WORKED ON COLOR AND DETAILS PAINTING HIGHLY ESTEEMED; PRACTICED BY ARISTOCRATS ZEN BUDDHISM IMPORTED FROM CHINA IN THE LATE TWELFTH CENTURY REJECTS WORLDLINESS, MATERIALISM, AND PHYSICAL ADORNMENT AUSTERITY, SELF CONTROL, COURAGE, LOYALTY MEDITATION IS KEY TO ENLIGHTENMENT; TEACHES INTUITION THROUGH INTROSPECTION, RATHER THAN THROUGH BOOKS/SCRIPTURE; WARRIORS/ARTISTS ADAPTED THIS PHILOSOPHY JAPANESE ARCHITECTURE AND SCULPTURE ZEN PHILOSOPHY IS REFLECTED; SIMPLE ARCHITECTURAL DESIGNS; MADE OF WOOD, MEANT TO HARMONIZE WITH ITS NATURAL ENVIRONMENT FLOORS OVERLAID WITH STRAW MATS; ZEN GARDEN; SERVE FOR SPIRITUAL REFRESHMENT AND CONTEMPLATION DEEP RESPECT FOR THE NATURAL WORLD; SHINTOISM BELIEVES IN SPIRITS JAPAN IS HEAVILY FORESTE...

Under the Wave off Kanagaw a (Kanagawa oki nami ura), also known as the Great Wave, from the series Thirty-six Views of Mount Fuji. Katsushika Hokusai. 1830– 1833 C.E. Polychrome woodblock print; ink and color on paper. one of the most famous works of art in the world Hokusai’s print displays the influence of Dutch art, and proved to be inspirational for many artists working in Europe later in the nineteenth century. Mount Fuji does not always dominate the frame. Under the Wave off Kanagawa is full of visual play. The mountain, made tiny by the use of perspective, appears as if it too will be swallowed up by the wave. Hokusai has arranged the composition to frame Mount Fuji. he white top of the great wave creates a diagonal line that leads the viewers eye directly to the peak of the mountain top. Hokusai discovered Western prints that came to Japan by way of Dutch trade. From the Dutch artwork Hokusai became interested in linear perspective.  The influence of Dutc...

White and Red Plum Blossoms. Ogata Korin. c. 1710–1716 C.E. Ink, watercolor, and gold leaf on paper. Ogata Kôrin transforms a very simple landscape theme—two flowering trees on either side of a brook—into a dream vision. the image seems both abstract and realistic at the same time.  Its background, a subtle grid of gold leaf, denies any sense of place or time and imbues everything with an ethereal glow.  The stream’s swelling metallic curls and spirals are a make-believe of flowing water, and its sharply tapered serpentine contour lines angle the picture plane in an unnatural upward tilt.  the artist's intimate knowledge of how a plum tree grows can be seen in their writhing forms and tangle of shoots and branches. The trunks of the trees are nothing more than pools of mottled color without so much as an outline.  These forms and spaces appear flat to the eye.  function of the folding screen within the traditional Japanese interior.  a vi...

 Ryoan-ji. Kyoto, Japan. Muromachi Period, Japan. c. 1480 C.E.; current design most likely dates to the 18th century. Rock garden. Ryōanji is a temple located in north Kyoto, Japan affiliated with a branch of Zen Buddhism. The followers of Zen Buddhism pursued “enlightenment” or “awakening” by means of self-introspection and personal experience in daily life. The quintessence and aesthetics of Zen is epitomized in the rock garden and architecture of Ryōanji.   Ryōanji thrived as a great Zen center for the cultural activities of the elite from the late 16th through the first half of the 17th century under the patronage of the Hosokawa family. is regarded as an expression of Zen art and a symbol of Zen Buddhism and Japanese culture.   The Ryōanji garden is the one of the most famous examples of a rock garden—a form which developed during the Moromachi period (1392-1573)  This type of garden consists of rocks and pebbles rather than veg...

Night Attack on the Sanjô Palace .   Kamakura Period, Japan. c. 1250–1300 C.E. Handscroll (ink and color on paper) It is hard to imagine an image of war that matches the visceral and psychological power of the Night Attack on the Sanjô Palace.   It also is a prime example of the action‐packed otoko‐e, “men’s paintings,” created in the Kamakura period. A handscroll is meant to be held and unrolled section by section horizontally in contrast to a scroll that is intended to be hung and is vertically oriented. The Kamakura period lasted from 1185 until 1333. It was initiated by the Shogun Minamoto no Yoritomo and marked the beginning of feudal Japan and the samurai caste.  Designed to be unrolled in sections for close‐up viewing, it shows the basic features of this pictorial form: a bird’s eye view of action moves right‐to‐left  The attention to detail is so exact that historians consider it a uniquely valuable reference for this period: from ...

Todai-ji. Nara, Japan. Various artists, including sculptors Unkei and Keikei, as well as the Kei School. 743 C.E.; rebuilt c. 1700. Bronze and wood (sculpture); wood with ceramic-tile roo ng (architecture). When completed in the 740s, Todai-ji (or “Great Eastern Temple”) was the largest building project ever on Japanese soil. Its creation reflects the complex intermingling of Buddhism and politics in early Japan The roots of Todai-ji are found in the arrival of Buddhism in Japan in the 6th century. Buddhism made its way from India along the Silk Route through Central Asia, China and Korea. Mahayana Buddhism was officially introduced to the Japanese Imperial court around 552 This connection between sacred and secular power would define Japan’s ruling elite for centuries to come.  Buddhism quickly became associated with the Imperial court whose members became the patrons of early Buddhist art and architecture. These early Buddhist projects also reveal the receptivity o...