Art from Japanese

Poetry and Japan's Visual Arts

2008-11-20T09:31:00.000-08:00

Lyrical Images: Poetry and Japan's Visual Arts

Joan B Mirviss Ltd
39 East 78th Street, 4th floor
New York City

November 14, 2008 – January 23, 2009

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We are pleased to present a selection of more than thirty-five Japanese prints and paintings from the nineteenth and twentieth-centuries that explore the rich artistic legacy that developed between Japan's literary and visual arts. Organized around cherished poetic themes and lyrical motifs, the exhibition will include superb examples of calligraphy, color woodblock prints, gold-leaf screens, and painted hanging scrolls.
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Tuesday — Friday 12 — 5 pm
Saturday 1 — 4 pm (through December 20)
and by appointment

Morimoto The New Art of Japanese Cooking

2008-09-06T14:33:00.000-07:00

by Masaharu Morimoto

* Morimoto
The New Art of Japanese Cooking
* by Masaharu Morimoto
* Dorling Kindersley (DK Books) 2007
* 272 pages, hardcover, US $40.00
* ISBN-10: 0756631238
* ISBN-13: 9780756631239
* Information provided by the publisher.

The first cookbook by Masaharu Morimoto represents the very best of what's exciting in culinary books today: Global Cooking for the 21st Century.

While Masaharu Morimoto's cooking is rooted in Japanese cuisine, he often adds the unexpected ingredient from the Western world to create a whole new, balanced and dramatic taste. His unique cuisine is characterized by beautiful Japanese color combinations and aromas, with the preparation infusing multicultural influences such as traditional Chinese spices and simple Italian ingredients, all presented in a refined French style. Morimoto gears his flavors to the new-world palate, creating enduring combinations.

In addition to over 120 recipes, Morimoto: The New Art of Japanese Cooking is a fully-illustrated look at the chef's personal culinary journey and his unique philosophy of Japanese cuisine. Morimoto's trademark style—a seamless and inspired integration of Western and Japanese ingredients—will be reflected in the design, organization and philosophy of his eponymous book. Gorgeous four-color photography throughout—including helpful step-by-step instructions and specific features explaining Chef Morimoto's techniques and cooking and plating philosophy. The book also enlightens the reader on topics such as how to slice and cure fish, how to properly eat sushi, and the origins and significance of rice, dashi, soy sauce, tofu, blowfish, wasabi, sake and other unique Japanese ingredients.

The book's chapters cover all of the bases, beginning with Sushi and Sashimi and then moving on to Noodles, Breads, Soups and Rice. The reader will learn techniques from the art of making Sushi Rice to frying stuffed breads known as Curry Pan. Mouth-watering recipes include Pork Gyoza and Morimoto's Noodle Soup with Aromatic Sichuan Peppercorns in a Ramen Base. The chapter on Fish & Shellfish includes Grilled Scallops Stuffed with Sweet Onion and sumptuous Crispy Morimoto Tempura. The Meat chapter covers recipes ranging from Crispy Duck with Port Wine Reduction and Red Miso Sauce to Miso Braised Short Ribs Tempura and Lamb Carpaccio. Vegetables, Tofu and Egg chapters cover salads such as Bamboo Shoots with Fresh Mint and Frozen Lettuce (a whimsical play on the classic Caesar salad) and a traditional square Sushi Omelet. For the adventurous cook, the book includes unique Iron Chef TV creations of Squid Strawberry Ice Candy and Vanilla Ice Cream with Lobster Sauce. The Dessert chapter also dazzles with buttery Red Miso Souffle with Yuzu Ice Cream, Sugared Salmon with Beet Sorbet and Yuzu Foam and Asparagus Pocky covered in rich chocolate.

And of course, Morimoto's signature dishes are also included—Tuna Pizza with Anchovy Aioli, Daikon Fettucine with Tomato Basil Sauce, Bouillabaisse, zesty Angry Chicken and sizzling Grilled Steak with Garlic-Soy Jus.

Whether you're a fan of Iron Chef or just interested in learning how to meld Japanese traditions with fusion cuisine in your own kitchen, this monumental cookbook from one of the world's most inspiring chefs is a must for you!

About the Author
Chef Masaharu Morimoto—known to millions as star of Food Network's Iron Chef and Iron Chef America—is as comfortable cooking against the clock for a live television audience as he is preparing his signature omakase menu at his namesake restaurants. But no matter the circumstances, wherever Chef Morimoto cooks, his inspired and innovative dishes garner critical and popular acclaim. Through the seamless integration of Western and Japanese ingredients, Masaharu Morimoto has effectively created his own, unique cuisine—one defined by innovation and inspiration.

Chef Morimoto began his culinary training in Hiroshima at a restaurant specializing in sushi. At the age of 24, Morimoto opened his own restaurant in Hiroshima, and soon distinguished himself from his peers by infusing European and Western cooking techniques and ingredients into his preparations. Five years later, Morimoto sold his Hiroshima restaurant and settled in Manhattan, where he spent the next few years working at several Japanese restaurants including the Sony Club, eventually becoming the first executive chef at Nobu. He currently has restaurants in New York, Philadelphia, Tokyo, and Mumbai, as well as his own line of sake and beer.

Morimoto Recipes
o Blowfish Skin Caprese
o Curry Pan
o Angry Chicken

A New Wave for Japanese Art

2008-09-06T14:30:00.000-07:00

International art collectors are warming up to a new breed of daring Japanese artists that are no longer beholden to Western styles
by : Hiroko Tashiro

It all seems like a distant memory now, but back in the late 1980s, Japan was the center of gravity in the international art market. Cash-flush corporations and real estate moguls snapped up trophy works by Vincent Van Gogh and Picasso for then-huge sums. Then, as the 1990s arrived, it all ended in tears with the end of Japan's fabled "bubble economy." Japanese art collectors were more likely to be frantic sellers than sophisticated buyers.

Now, the Japanese art market, though nowhere near the size it was back in the go-go '80s, is showing tentative signs of a comeback. The difference this time is that a new wave of Japanese modern artists are driving the way, rekindling collector interest at home and abroad. The Japanese have always been avid art lovers. An estimated 1 million of them visit the Louvre in Paris every year. And the economy's revival this decade has given many of them the financial wherewithal to buy artworks that catch their fancy.

At the same time, contemporary Japanese artists such as Takashi Murakami and Yoshitomo Nara, who are gaining an international following, have sold some works for in excess of $1 million in the U.S recently. Japanese art exhibits showcasing contemporary artworks are also drawing huge crowds.

Small Piece of the Pie
In January, an art fair called Art@Agnes at a Tokyo hotel was packed with 4,500 people, including young women and families who usually don't go to art galleries. A group of more than 30 contemporary art galleries in Tokyo and Osaka displayed their collections all together to the general public for the first time. "There were far more people than we expected. It was amazing," says Sueo Mitsuma, director of Mizuma Art Gallery, one of the organizers of the fair.

Japan's art market, though growing again, is still a small piece of the global art market. Last year, total sales generated by the country's top eight art auction houses were just under $150 million. In contrast, annual sales worldwide at the prestigious Christie's auction houses hit $4.67 billion. The $8.2 million or so the Tokyo Art Fair draws in sales is dwarfed by the $573 million that premier modern art exhibits such as Art Basel raked in last year.

Still, optimists point out that Japanese contemporary artworks have only recently gained notice abroad, or even domestically. "Japanese contemporary art has never received much attention in Japan," says Mitsuma of Mizuma Art Gallery. Another edge is price: Japanese works are reasonable, at least compared with the inflated prices now surfacing for similar fare in fashionable art markets like China and India.

Auction Houses Take Notice
Kyoko Hattori, 32, a vice-president with the acquisitions group at Aetos, started to collect contemporary art about 18 months ago and has bought works, mostly paintings, ranging from $400 to $4,000 or so. One somewhat outlandish work she picked up at the Art@Agnes show is a drawing of a train traversing a women's cleavage. "Contemporary art is interesting," says Hattori. "You can feel personal feelings of the artists through their work."

Japanese auction houses have also taken notice of the demand for affordable contemporary art. Shinwa Art Auction, which is listed on the Osaka Stock Exchange, controls 33% of the art auction business in Japan. The art house started a separate contemporary art auction last year. Shinwa officials were surprised to see works by modernists such as Yoshitomo Nara and Hisashi Tenmyouya sell for $115,000 and $136,000, respectively. Back in 2004, one painting by Tenmyouya only managed to fetch $12,000, suggesting a sizable increase in art market valuations.

The "Japanese art market had suffered from the after-effects of the collapsed bubble economy and deflation for years," notes Yoichiro Kurata, a former fund manager who now, as president, handles auctions for Shinwa Art. "But there is a huge possibility of growth in Japan, and we're finally entering a new phase triggered by contemporary art." Overseas art collectors are also now quite active in Japan's modern art scene. In the latest auction by Shinwa in April, some 40% of bidders were foreigners.

Younger Artists Gain Global Appeal
Investment funds that buy works, promote them, and hope they appreciate in value long-term are also fueling the contemporary art revival in Japan. Eijiro Imafuku, CEO of Fine Art Investment, which established the Contemporary Art Fund in 2005, thinks interest in buying modern art will grow as consumers start to become more sophisticated about how to price and procure pieces. His fund also publishes an art magazine on the inner workings of the traditionally opaque Japanese art market. "When people become aware of that, it will lead to an expansion of the art market in Japan," says Imafuku.

The revived interest in Japanese contemporary art is encouraging in another respect. Younger artists, less beholden to Western artistic styles and inspired by uniquely Japanese ones based on manga comic books and animation, are developing original works that have global appeal. "There is a generation of artists who are not copying European or American art but have new ideas based on Japanese traditions and culture," says art gallery owner Mitsuma. "They don't have an inferiority complex toward Europe or America like old Japanese."

Osaka Artist

2008-06-01T06:38:00.000-07:00

by Tsunetomi Kitano
Tsunetomi Kitano had made himself a name as a great artist of bijin-ga, images of beautiful women. He was a dominating figure in the art scene of Osaka in the first half of the twentieth century.

Trendy and Expensive

2008-06-01T06:36:00.000-07:00

by Shiko Munakata
Shiko Munakata is one of the most significant modern Japanese artists of the twentieth century. His art work consists of paintings, prints, ceramics and calligraphy. Looking at his art work, the way he produced it and his fame, one could be tempted to call him the Japanese Picasso of the twentieth century.

Honored Female Artist

2008-06-01T06:34:00.000-07:00

by Shoen Uemura
In Japan female artist Shoen Uemura is a highly respected person and a kind of household name. People owe her respect for her courage to fight for the rights of women in Japan and for her achievements as a great artist.

Cat Prints

2008-06-01T06:32:00.000-07:00

by Tomoo Inagaki
Tomoo Inagaki is an important Sosaku Hanga artist. After World War II he found an nice little market niche. He specialized in cat prints in modern design.

Subjects from the Noh Theater

2008-06-01T06:30:00.000-07:00

by Tsukioka Kogyo
Tsukioka Kogyo has a firm place in the hall of fame of Japanese woodblock print artists. Even new collectors can recognize a typical Kogyo print easily. His style is distinctive and so are his subjects - Noh plays.

Kabuki Prints

2008-06-01T06:28:00.000-07:00

by Tadamasa Ueno
Tadamasa Ueno specialized on Kabuki prints designed in a modern yet classical way. In today's ukiyo-e market his prints are undervalued for no understandable reason. Collectors who have the courage to go against fancy trends will get a lot of good print for little money.

Japanese American Artist

2008-06-01T06:26:00.000-07:00

by Chiura Obata
After 1945 quite a few Japanese artists settled permanently in the United States like Masami Teraoka or Tadashi Asoma. Chiura Obata was the first to live and work in the US. It was not always easy for him. When Japanese Americans and Japanese nationals from the West coast were put into detention camps in 1942, he was among them.

Mesmerizing Flowers

2008-06-01T06:22:00.000-07:00

by Kazutoshi Sugiura
The works of Japanese artists Kazutoshi Sugiura are unique in Japanese art history. His pictures are gems of noble beauty and treasure, as seen in the gold-grounded dreamlike floridity. Despite his concentration on a single motif, flower still lifes, he has earned himself an international reputation for his art.

Yoshiaki Kita

2008-05-30T11:41:00.000-07:00

Yoshiaki Kita was born in Ishikawa prefecture in Japan in 1956. In 1979 he moved to France. Like many artists of post-war Japan, Yoshiaki Kita uses Western printmaking techniques. Silkscreen is among the favorite ones of the post-war generation of Japanese artists. And like many of the Japanese artists born in the middle of the 20th century, he combines in his art works Western and Japanese elements.

Shigera Tanaguchi

2008-05-30T11:39:00.000-07:00

Shigera Tanaguchi was born three years after the end of the great Pacific war. He is from a generation of modern Japanese artists who combine old an new, oriental and western art elements. The art works by Shigera Tanaguchi have received worldwide recognition. They are to be found in such important museums like the Moma (Museum of Modern Art) in New York, the Cincinnati Museum of Modern Art or the Osaka Museum of International Art.

Hiroto Norikane

2008-05-30T11:34:00.000-07:00

Mr. Hiroto Norikane was born in 1949 in Hiroshima prefecture. He graduated from Sokei Academy of Fine Arts, and had studied under Yoshida Hodaka and Kato Kiyomi. The artist works in a mixed media technique of etching and mezzotint. The motifs chosen for his art prints are taken from rural Japan and from the Japanese tradition.

Tattoo Art in Modern Japan

2008-05-28T13:47:00.001-07:00

Although some younger people may consider tattooing as trendy, the majority of the Japanese population still considers it as something connected to the underworld of mafia gangsters or a bad low class habit at the best. Younger people who consider tattoos as iki - a minority among Japanese youth - tend to use partial tattoos in Western style on their upper arms, where it is not directly visible.

The Meiji Restoration until Postwar Japan

2008-05-28T13:46:00.001-07:00

In its strive to adopt Western civilizations, the Imperial Meiji government banned tattooing as something considered a barbaric relict of the past. The funny thing was that the Japanese irezumi artists now got new clients - the sailors from the foreign ships anchoring in Japanese harbors. Thus Japanese tattoo art was spread to the West.

During the first half of the twentieth century, horimono remained a forbidden art form until 1948, when the prohibition was officially lifted. Some say that this step had become necessary to legalize the demand by soldiers of the American occupation forces for horimono and irezumi.

Tattoos in the Edo Period

2008-05-28T13:42:00.000-07:00

During the Edo period - 1603-1868 - Japanese tattoo art became a part of ukiyo-e - the floating world culture. Prostitutes - yujos - of the pleasure quarters used tattoos to increase their attractiveness for customers. Body tattoos were used by laborers and firemen.

From 1720 on, the tattooing of criminals became an official punishment and replaced the amputation of the nose and the ears. The criminal received a ring tattoo around the arm for each offense or a character tattoo on his forehead. Tattooing criminals was continued until 1870, when it was abolished by the new Meiji government of the Japanese Emperor.

This visible punishment created a new class of outcasts that had no place in society and nowhere to go. Many of these outlaws were ronin - masterless samurai warriors. They had no alternatives than organizing in gangs. These men formed the roots of yakuza - the organized criminals in Japan in the twentieth century.

Japanese Tattoo Art

2008-05-28T13:39:00.000-07:00

Japanese tattoo art has several names - irezumi or horimono in the Japanese language. Irezumi is the word for the traditional visible tattoo that covers large parts of the body like the back. Japanese tattoo art has a very long history.

Since the influence of Confucianism and Buddhism on the Japanese culture, tattoo art has a negative connotation for the majority of the Japanese people. In the eyes of an average Japanese a tattoo is considered a mark of a yakuza - a member of the Japanese mafia - or a macho symbol of members of the lower classes.

Early History of Japanese Tattoo Art

Archaeologists believe that the early settlers of Japan, the Ainu people, used facial tattoos. Chinese documents report about the Wa people - the Chinese name for their Japanese neighbors - and their habits of diving into water for fish and shells and decorating the whole body with tattoos. These reports are about 1700 years old.

For the higher developed Chinese culture, tattooing was a barbaric act. When Buddhism was brought from China to Japan and with it a strong influence of the Chinese culture, tattooing got negative connotations. Criminals were marked with tattoos to punish and identify them in society.

Museum Quality Masterpiece of 18th C Buddhist Sculpture

2008-05-08T11:36:00.000-07:00

Museum Quality Early 18th Century Edo Period (circa 1700) Gilded Japanese Sculpture of Amida Nyorai Buddha. Seated cross-legged in the lotus posture, hands joined in the mudra of contemplation, eyes all but closed in meditation, we are gazing upon the sculptor's vision of Amida enthroned in paradise. The elaborately carved lotus upon which he sits is itself a symbol of the attributes of the Amida Buddha: gentleness, openness, and purity. This is a large, rare and exquisite example, fabulously carved in every aspect, from the Mandala, the Lotus, and the multiple stands, to the Buddha himself, all sumptuously lacquered in beautiful gold. The Buddha's hair is arranged in snail-like curls, and a sacred jewel adorns his forehead. The robes are enhanced with gorgeous black lacquered designs. It is, in our opinion and extensive experience, among the finest Buddhist art we have ever seen offered for sale. It is imbued with all of the gentle idealism one associates with Japanese Buddhist sculpture. We are proud to offer this masterwork. 32.5 inches (82.5cm) tall x 21 inches (53.5cm) wide. From a widely renowned and published collection that has been exhibited at the Metropolitan Museum and Japan Society. Detail....

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Fine 18th Cty. Silver Leaf Japanese Screen of a Phoenix

2008-05-08T11:32:00.000-07:00

Early 18th Century Japanese Two Panel Screen Painting featuring a spectacular Phoenix. Exquisitely painted with silver leaf on paper. Original brocade borders. Screens this early are very rare, and screens of these proportions are rarely seen. 28 inches (71 cm)w x 24 inches 61 cm)h. Good Condition. From a prominent and widely exhibited collection. Details....

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Tim Mathers and Marilee Hall Collaboration Piece

2008-05-08T11:29:00.001-07:00

Adorning the top of Tim Mathers' imaginative vessel is an extraordinary sculpture by the renowned Marilee Hall. A striking and unforgettable collaboration from 1984 between two great ceramic artists. An early piece like this is especially valuable, as Mathers is now the head of the Ceramic Department at Indiana University, and is no longer producing any work. This piece has had a single owner since it was created over 20 years ago. Height: 10 inches (25.5 cm), Circumference: 27 inches (68.5 cm). Details....

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The Art of Japanese Craft

2008-05-08T11:23:00.001-07:00

1875 to the Present by Felice Fischer

From Japan’s first forays onto the international stage of world’s fairs in the late 19th century to the dynamic creativity of the 1920 and 1930s, from the heady post–World War II period to the present day, Japanese crafts have exhibited a rich diversity of media and techniques. One of the first illustrated surveys in English of modern-era Japanese crafts––including ceramics, lacquerware, metalcraft, and wood––this elegant book, with 70 color illustrations, is an invaluable guide for the collector and scholar.

Focusing on an important collection of Japanese crafts destined for the Philadelphia Museum of Art, the text discusses the artists and ideas that shaped and defined the aesthetic of 20th-century Japan, noting that this nation—which so deeply appreciates and fosters its crafts traditions—hails its artists as “living national treasures.” The book also includes artists’ biographies and reproductions of their signatures and marks.

Felice Fischer is The Luther W. Brady Curator of Japanese Art and Curator of East Asian Art at the Philadelphia Museum of Art. She is the author of Ike Taiga and Tokuyama Gyokuran (Yale).

Japanese Dragon Tattoo Picture

2008-05-02T08:44:00.001-07:00

Tattoo Design Details:
3 sessions . hell lot of pain soon to be finished...but i think it will turn out nice- tattoo Mini denmark

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The Japanese Art of Sex: How to Tease, Seduce, and Pleasure the Samurai in Your Bedroom

2008-05-02T08:32:00.000-07:00

The Japanese Art of Sex: How to Tease, Seduce, and Pleasure the Samurai in Your Bedroom by Jina Bacarr, Yelena Zhavoronkova (Illustrator)

Synopsis

Attention to detail, small gestures with profound meaning, brilliantly intuitive . . . these are the hallmarks of Japanese art, and they apply equally to the Japanese art of sex. Here for the first time is a practical guide that shows you how to use the ancient and modern Japanese sexual practices of court ladies, courtesans, and geisha to spark romance and deliver an erotic "floating world" of pleasure to you and your partner.

Japanese sex is not about the orgasm. In Japan, honest and healthy sex is at one with a love of nature and purity. But it is often the woman who knows more and cares more about extending passion into the realm of spirituality, using all of the senses. In The Japanese Art of Sex you'll practice aromatherapy, bathing and erotic meditation for calming; explore the art of conversation to stimulate the mind and expose the heart, roleplay to fulfill your fantasies; and, finally, use your fingers and tongue to tease and caress before choosing a position to make love.

Chapters with titles like "The Nine Points of Beauty," "Iki: The Art of Cool," and "Bathhouse Games and Sexy Cuisine" lead you step by step through over a thousand years of Japanese explorations into sex and love. While explicit, the discussions are tasteful and resolutely nonexploitive.

For like-minded modern Western women, eager to explore new ways of lovemaking and pleasure-giving, this book will be a welcome respite from all the other manuals that emphasize technique over the art of sex.

Jina Bacarr has written business books and magazine -articles, and she has coauthored a novel about Japan. She was previously the Japan-based consultant on KCBS-TV and MSNBC, andcurrently has her own weekly radio show, "On the Wild Side: The Spicier Side of Books." She lives in Southern California.

Biography

Jina Bacarr has written business books, magazine articles, and co-authored a novel about Japan. She was the Japanese consultant on KCB-TV, MSNBC, and has her own weekly radio show "On the Wild Side," the spicier side of books. She has worked as a companion girl, appeared in Japanese commercials, and written animation scripts for a Japanese movie studio.

The Queen of the Night

2008-05-01T14:44:00.000-07:00

The Queen of the Night by : Kazuya Akimoto

"The Queen of the Night" : New, contemporary Japonisme, Japanese pop art, anime, manga style, literature, fairy tale, fable theme, surrealism woman portrait painting, black and white, monotone, pseudo-relief, 3d, decorative, ornamental, odd, strange, human, female figure, dark, night, raw art, symbolism, acrylic painting #7315, 2008 | Kazuya Akimoto Art Museum

The Tikotin Museum of Japanese Art

2008-05-01T14:24:00.000-07:00

Description
The museum was founded in the year 1959, at the joint initiative of Felix Tikotin, a known collector of Japanese art who contributed his private collection, and the late Abba Chushi. The museum houses about 6,000 exhibits which include paintings, reprints, sketches, textiles, ancient ornamented books, ceramics, miniature statuettes etc. The exhibition hall is constructed in the spirit of the Japanese architecture. The museum’s library houses about 2,500 books and scientific publications on the subject of Japan and its culture. The place hosts activities on the subject of Japanese culture such as lectures, films, courses on Japanese flower schemes, Zen meditation and the study of the Japanese language.

Modern Art (Japanese Magic Show)

2008-05-01T14:22:00.000-07:00

J-Art: Japanese Pop Art

2008-05-01T14:16:00.000-07:00

J-Art: Japanese Pop Art by : Daniel Kretschmer

What is Pop art? Pop art as a movement started in the 1950s in Britain and the U.S. which takes its art from popular mass culture as opposed to the elite art world. Today the term can still be used for art as an expression influenced from the mainstream culture of the masses.

While Andy Warhol was making his Soup Cans famous in the U.S., a new and exciting art in Japan was starting to form and take on a course of its own.

Tanaami and American Influences

One of the first and most important of the Japanese pop artists is Keiichi Tanaami. He was educated at the Musashino Art University, and would take a designer job after graduation. It wasn't long before he left the company he worked for due to his busy schedule with outside activities. These creative activities included experimentations with animation, lithograph, illustration, and editorial design.

By the late 60s, Tanaami traveled to the United States where he had an influential meeting with Andy Warhol in his legendary Factory in New York. He was very happy to have met Andy while he was doing his silkscreens, and much of his work was inspired by Andy's style. Later, after moving to San Fransisco, the Japanese artist's work became very colorful and psychedelic. He even designed a cover for Jefferson Airplane.

Much of Tanaami's work comes from dreams and memories. He remembers as a child squeezing goldfish that were about to die, until their guts came out. You can see this in some of his goldfish sculptures. Gruesome and interesting stuff.

Manga and Anime

Perhaps the best known contemporary Japanese artist today is Takashi Murakami. He is attributed with the modern art style known as "superflat," for a blending of traditional art with newer concepts deriving, in part, from manga and anime. These artworks are known for their flat planes of colorful images.

While Andy Warhol in the 1960s was turning consumer products into art, Murakami is now turning art into consumer products. He says he knows how much the Japanese people love art, but very few can afford the upper class art. So he creates affordable art anybody can afford. His art comes in the form of toys, paintings, sculptures, dolls, and mannequins, T-shirts, videos, and any other type of product readily available for consumers. He also designed a Louis Vuitton handbag.

His art is often colorful and imaginative, such as the painting entitled "727." Some of his art is daring, such as his "My Lonesome Cowboy." The "Cowboy" shows an obvious reference to American culture with the lasso made from the, uh, fluids.

Graffiti and Childlike Figures

Like Murakami, Japanese artist Yoshimoto Nara derives his style from manga and anime. His work is usually done in graffiti-type painting and the characters are often cute and childlike, but which also possess dark characteristics. These characters come from a meshing of childhood memories and an input of contemporary style. What you get is a unique consumer art product.

There's an excellent British miniseries called Japanorama, which chronicles the host's seeking of Japanese culture in general. One of the episodes is all about J-Art and has the above artists and much more. So check it out, and don't forget to watch it with a nice hot bowl of Ramen.

New exhibition in Tikotin Museum of Japanese Art in Haifa

2008-05-01T14:10:00.000-07:00

Georges Weil was the first western artist to be invited to join the Japanese Netsuke Chokokukai (The Japanese Netsuke Carvers Association), and the first foreign artist to participate in a group exhibition by its members. In 1989 George Weil emigrated to Israel. For almost twenty years he did not make any netsuke, so that all the netsuke on display have been created over the last two years especially for this exhibition. Essentially, Weil’s netsuke fall into two categories. One is the traditional, very detailed Japanese type, but fashioned in his own unique style. His other motifs are semiabstractions, compositions with clean, elegant lines.

The Art Of Japanmanship's Character

2008-04-29T14:47:00.000-07:00

Over at the Japanmanship weblog, pseudonymous developer JC Barnett has been discussing the differences between Japanese and Western character design , with particular reference to the recent release of the Western-developed, Japanese-styled MySims.

Skipping over some of the fun, but nitpicky nitpicking of MySims' stylings, here are a couple of notable points on Japanese graphical paradigms: "As a general rule, which isn’t at all foolproof, and I’m sure keen-eyed readers will be happy to point out the exceptions of which I’m sure there are many, there are three basic types of character: the realistic, the manga and the abstract. It’s interesting to note that the more abstract you go, the less detailing there is, until the characters are almost 2D, graphically designed Dick Bruna-esque icons."

JC also adds - and it's hard not to agree: "Characterizations too differ vastly in Japan. Whereas the West seems to want to play hard-bitten underdog single-army war machines with ludicrously hard names, like Trent Bullet or Cutter Hardarse, in Japan you see more effete teenagers with deep running hinterlands, a band of friends and ludicrously faux Western names." And both of them are tres amusant.

Japanese Art Extreme

2008-04-29T14:12:00.000-07:00

Just Pictur art extreme art

Japanese Tattoo Video

2008-04-28T13:27:00.000-07:00

Amazing Japanese Art

Assassin's Creed Limited Edition Art Book

2008-04-25T12:55:00.000-07:00

Usually ships within 5-15 days Add Basket
Description :
The Third Crusade is tearing the Holy Land apart. You are an elite Assassin sent to stop the hostilities by suppressing the powers on both the Crusader and Saracen sides. But as you carry out your missions, a conspiracy begins to unfold. You find yourself tangled up in a conflict that threatens not only the Holy Land, but the entire world.

Features :
* pages: 160
* Platform: XBox 360, PS3, PC
* Making-of art book: Beautiful artwork and renders reveal the dawning of Altaïr.
* Interviews: Revealing interviews with Jade Raymond and key members of every team.
* Lithograph: A high-quality lithograph of a stunning rendered scene.
* High-quality Packaging: Hadcover package with stunning artwork from the team on the cover.
* Clean box art: Prima's one-sheet will fall away when the shrinkwrap is removed, leaving pristine art, unmarred by logos, barcodes, or taglines.

further information :
Release Date : Nov 16, 2007
Language : English
Version : US
PAX-Code : PAX0001852320
Catalog No. : ISBN076155873X
Item Code : 9780761558736

Japanese Garden (1) Limited Edition Image

2008-04-25T12:48:00.000-07:00

Description :
One of twelve prints by Elena Fini & John Swannell, art-directed by Helen David. These magical images represent a new way of showing fashion by adding imaginary landscapes to create a new world.

29cm x 29cm Limited edition photograph & illustration collaboration by photographer John Swannell and graphic designer Elena Fini. Printed on Archival Matte paper. Signed and individually numbered (1-25).

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The art of Japanese pen spinning

2008-04-22T15:44:00.000-07:00

Japanese Human Art - Why Is My Girlfriend Mad?

2008-04-22T15:28:00.000-07:00

Awesome video that multiple people performing together to form a skid of a girlfriend going crazy on this poor begging guy. She's throwing water, plate, pizza, spaghetti etc. The video will take you back in time and show you the reason that she was mad. Surprise~

See Video Japanese Human Art - Why Is My Dirlfriend Mad?

Art Tatto Artist

2008-04-22T11:13:00.000-07:00

Just link art tatto artist

The Hendricks Art Collection, Ltd.

2008-04-22T01:02:00.000-07:00

The Hendricks Art Collection, Ltd. is the oldest gallery in the United States specializing in modern Japanese Art Prints, and Japanese Woodblock Prints. It was established in Tokyo in 1965 and incorporated in the State of Maryland in 1970. Kappy Hendricks, President and owner, is a senior member of the American Society of Appraisers with a specialty in Japanese prints. She is an author, curator, lecturer and expert witness. The Hendricks Art Collection, Ltd. is the world wide exclusive representative outside of Japan for the Japanese Woodblock Artworks of Tadashi Nakayama. We are the largest dealer of Japanese Prints on the East Coast with a reputation for quality and authenticity. The Hendricks Japanese Art Collection purchases directly from the artists, as well as professionally appraised and authenticated collections that become available, and is also your source for professional Japanese Print Appraisals.

Kappy Hendricks is the world-wide expert on the works of Tadashi Nakayama. She is the author of his catalogue raisonne: Tadashi Nakayama: His Life and Work. She is also very familiar with the works of Joichi Hoshi as she was invited to his home to watch him work on several occasions before his death in 1979.

Early, rare and very recent Japanese art prints by Hajime Namiki are our specialty. We have been buying Japanese Artwork directly from Hajime Namiki since 1994. A number of leading American Museums have acquired Hajime Namiki woodblock Prints from us. We purchased the first Japanese Artworks directly from Shufu Miyamoto in the 1970s. (click on Shufu Miyamoto to be connected to his most recent works) In the 1980's, '90's, 2000- 2007, we have offered for sale images of all of the prints he has created. The Hendricks Art Collection, Ltd. became Koichi Maeda's exclusive representative outside of Japan in 2004. (See biographies and prints for sale) Click on "Artists"and "Artists" Works" on the homepage.

MAIN GALLERY:

5207 Crown St. Bethesda, MD 20816

Tel: (301) 229-5100

Fax(301) 229-4097
email: hendricksk@verizon.net

By appointment-exhibition of prints, consultation-regarding buying

Japanese woodblock prints, Important Japanese artists. etc. Appraising Collections

NEW YORK CITY JAPANESE PRINT GALLERY
Director: Jeffrey Hendricks

For further information: Call Jeffrey Hendricks

(917) 710-3515

email: hendricksk@verizon.net

We have a large number of prints which are not on our
website. Please do not be deterred by the large number of sold signs on
our site. We have many more prints in our New York City and Bethesda, Md. Galleries.

MeMBeR : American Society of Appraisers and Who's Who in America

The Birth of Venus, c.1485

2008-04-21T14:51:00.000-07:00

“The Birth of Venus,” a mythological allegory and representation of spring by Renaissance painter Sandro Botticelli (1444 – 1510), is one of the most recognizable images in the history of art. The lyrical painting of an ethereally delicate being is brought vividly to life through Boticelli’s mastery of supple forms, lines and exquisitely opalescent colors. A protégé of the Medici family Botticelli, virtually unknown centuries after his death, is also known for his glorious Sistine Chapel frescoes.

By : Sandro Botticelli Gallery and Saw and bought more Sandro Galery.

JAPANESE CIRCULAR WOOD BONE AND LACQUER PANEL

2008-04-21T14:45:00.000-07:00

A circular wood, bone and lacquer panel decorated with a mixing bowl with a long handled utensil resting against the side, with a small fish also on the rim. Two radishes and a shell fish rest on the table.

Signed on the bowl: Ryuzou with the seal also on the bowl reading Kohmei Ishikawa.

19th century

Diameter: 16 inches (40.5 cms)

REF: [PNC.28]

JAPANESE LACQUER IVORY AND WOOD YAOYA OSHICHI

2008-04-21T14:43:00.000-07:00

A lacquer, ivory and wood figure of Yaoya Oshichi. The legendary figure holding an ivory drumstick in her raised left hand and an open ivory fan in her right. The figure, signaling a fire alarm by beating a drum, dressed in long robes decorated in gold lacquer with floral designs. An ivory pouch with inscription on her obi behind her.

19th century

Height: 9 inches (23 cms)

REF:[ J2.18 ]

JAPANESE PAIR OF CLOISONNE BOTTLE VASES

2008-04-16T13:51:00.000-07:00

Two cloisonne bottle vases each with narrow flared necks over tall graduating bodies. Both decorated with dense floral and bird designs on a dark blue ground.

19th/20th century

Height: 9.5 inches (24 cms)

REF: J5.12

JAPANESE COPPER JAR MITSUHARO

2008-04-14T18:23:00.001-07:00

A fine copper jar carved and inlaid with a design of a cockerel, hen and chick in Katakiribo (carved) technique in gold, silver and various alloys. The exterior signed Katsura Mitsuharo (1871-1962) as is the original box.

Height: 9 inches (23 cms)

Diameter: 9.75 inches (25 cms)

For another example of work by Mitsuharo, a pupil of Toyokawa Kitsunaga, see: Victor Harris "Japanese Imperial Craftsmen, Meiji Art" from the Khalili Collection, British Museum Press, 1994, no 4.

JAPANESE SHORUSAI SILVER VASE

2008-04-14T18:22:00.001-07:00

A fine small silver vase with flared mouth over cylindrical neck and curving shoulders tapering to a narrow foot. The sides decorated with large chrysanthemum blooms over stem, leaves and a meandering stream. The design worked in katakiri-bori engraving and inlaid in shakudo, shibuichi and gold honzogan.

Signed: Shorusai

Late 19th/early 20th century

Height: 6.5 inches (16 cms)

REF: J3.27

JAPANESE PAIR OF BRONZE CYLINDER VASES

2008-04-14T18:19:00.000-07:00

A fine pair of bronze cylinder vases with elegant raised designs of cloisonne butterflies flying over trailing grape and vine designs. The leaves and fruit picked out in gold and alloys.

Unsigned

19th century

Height: 3.5 inches (9 cms)

REF: J3.29

JAPANESE OSHIMA JOUN BRONZE MODEL OF LEAPING CARP

2008-04-14T18:18:00.001-07:00

A finely worked bronze model of a leaping carp amongst the waves. The open-mouthed removable fish with well detailed lighter bronze body, the eyes inlaid with gold and shakudo. The finely worked waves splashing out from the rising fish.

Signed: Oshima Joun

Late 19th century

Height: 9 inches (23 cms)

Width: 19 inches (48.5 cms)

REF: J3.33

JAPANESE BRONZE CENSER IN FORM OF SEATED HOUND

2008-04-14T18:16:00.000-07:00

A fine and unusual bronze censer in the form of a seated hound. The animal with head raised and ears pricked. The neck with cord running around it and passing over the animal's back which also holds the censer lid. The slender legs supporting the arched body. The tail curling around the left haunch.

Late 18th century

Height: 4.5 inches (11.5 cms)

REF: J3.34

Nakedness

2008-03-29T13:38:00.002-07:00

Brain (1979) writes about the connection between Japanese tattoo and nudity. The Japanese use tattooing to give personality to the naked body. A nude to them has never been considered "divine" or even beautiful as it has in the West. The sight of the naked body really does not have the slightest charm. So erotic drawings never depict naked people and erotic women are never nude. A man or woman tattooed by the irezumi artist is never defenselessly nude without clothes. In fact tattooing "clothes" a Japanese (p.64).

Hiler (1929) also states that tattooing in Japan was substituted for clothing: "In Japan nothing immodest is found in the fact that the sexes bathe together in a state of absolute nudity, but any representation of the nude in art is considered indecent (p.5).

My question is whether the purpose of theJapanese tattoo is to hide the naked body because nudity is embarrassing. Nomura's article, "Remodelling the Japanese Body" (1990) provides answers to this question. He gives an example of the American zoologist, Edward Morse's work, Japan Day by Day (1917). Semi-nakedness was a natural part of the landscape in Japan at that time.

Morse's intellectual interest was aroused by all kinds of things and manners Japanese. In particular, he seems to have been strongly impressed by the fact that the Japanese often lived in a semi-naked state. He repeatedly notes the steaming bodies of rickshaw men resting after a ride; a woman in only a loincloth lying down with a baby to make it go to sleep; fishermen with just their fundoshi (loincloths) on mending their nets.Naked bodies appeared to Morse's eyes everywhere in the Japanese landscape (pp.259-260).

Nakedness used to be an accepted part of daily life. The Japanese were accustomed to seeing nudity. It did not always imply eroticism. As Hiler (1929) mentions, the Japanese have the habit of bathing. In those days, people did not have a bathtub at home. They usually took a public bath. Tattoo wearers took more time for a bath to show their tattoos proudly. Besides, there were many jobs in which the workers exposed most of their bodies: rickshaw men, fisher people, firemen, ama (women divers) or carpenters were all semi-naked or naked. Both males and females did not care about being naked in public.

Imagine sumo wrestlers. They still wrestle in the traditional way. Their nakedness was a part of their job. Nomura (1990) also mentions that there was a travelogue which naked peasants showed up in the early modern times. The scene of nakedness was very natural to the Japanese. Probably, tattooed people were often seen as well.

.In terms of aesthetic views, however, Japan has different ways of expressing eroticism from the West. Michener (1954) explains that ukiyo-e avoids nakedness and foregoes slick suggestiveness (p.202). It does not mean that ukiyo-e ignores eroticism, but rather, it is free of erotic content (Michener, 1954).

It is often said that in Japan naked parts denote coquetry only when set in the context of the tension resulting from the relationship between the naked and covered parts. For example, the simple exposure of private parts is not immediately connected with coquetry (Nomura, 1990: 262).

One-point Tattoo

2008-03-29T13:38:00.001-07:00

Contemporary tattoo style evolves from the West. Tattooing is treated as a body art and is gaining popularity among young people. "One-point tattoo" means getting only one tattoo, and is often used among young Japanese. Some Japanese choose to wear skulls, roses or hearts. The fashion in the entertainment world affects Japanese youth culture. For instance, my friend was a fan of a rock band and got a rose tattoo which represents a symbol of the band. Recently, Japanese entertainers with tattoos often show up on TV or in magazines. One Japanese pop singer has a tattoo of a bar code on her wrist, and the young tend to follow her style.

Nakano (1988) also states that tattooing has become more popular among Japanese females than males. Tattooing in Japan used to be dominated by males, but the tattooed female population is increasing. Females tend to be more keen on fashions than males, and tattooing is accepted as a fashion among Japanese women (p.195).

The attitudes towards the one-point tattoo and the full body tattoo are, more or less, different. Unlike the full body tattoo, the one-point tattoo is more acceptable as a fashion trend among the young in Japan.

Ethics in Japanese Adornment

2008-03-29T13:37:00.001-07:00

According to a recent article in a Japanese newspaper, tattoos and body piercing are regarded as an ultimate fashion, a form of self-expression and a physical transformation of the body in Japanese youth culture (The Daily Yomiuri, 1994). However, the permanent fashion does not entirely satisfy every customer. While the customers are pleased with getting the tattoo, they still consider Japan's cultural code. A young man is not perfectly comfortable with his tattoos. He can no longer wear a white shirt when commuting because it is visible through the fabric. Another 21 year-old man regrets his tattoos: "If you're interested in new fashion, remember that tattoos are forever" (The Daily Yomiuri, 1994).

The cultural code is still a big part of Japanese ethics. The body arts such as body piercing, henna painting, nail decorating and temporary tattoo are gaining more popularity than real tattoos in Japan (Saito, 1997). Besides, contemporary young tattooists are beginning to use computer technology to create new tattoo styles. Images are graphically designed on the computer and made into a transfer for temporary tattoos. The customers are able to wear real photo-like tattoos. The temporary tattoo is an attractive item for Japanese teenagers. The sales of the temporary tattoos have skyrocketed (Saito, 1997). People can enjoy tattoos as fashion without any risk of breaking cultural code.

From One-point Tattoo to Tatuu

2008-03-29T13:36:00.003-07:00

Recently, tattooing seems to be more popular among Japanese people than a few years ago, not as just "one-point tattoo," but as tatuu(tattoo). Tatuu isa Japanese-English term, coming from the English word, "tattoo." Japanese often use tatuu instead irezumi or horimono . A magazine article describes the current tattoo situation. Many Japanese tattooers and tattooees gathered in Osaka for a photograph convention held by a magazine publisher in April, 1999 (Mori 1999). They showed off their tattoos proudly, and tended to compare and compete with others: "My tattoo cost more than yours!" According to this article (Mori, 1999), the number of young Japanese tattooists who learned tattooing in the West is growing. While the Western designs are becoming popular among young Japanese, the Japanese traditional style is highly appreciated among tattoo-lovers.Japanese people often use these terms, youbori and wabori to distinguish tattooing styles. Yobori means the Western style of tattoos.

For example, the designs of this style are flowers, animals, cartoon characters and much else, and such tattoos are usually done by machine. On the other hand, the term wabori meaning "Japanese style," refers to ukiyo-e pictures. They are dragons, carp, Buddha, maple leaves or peonies. Many traditional tattooists also use tattooing machines, but in a traditional way. Japanese tattooing used to be done by hand. Tebori, tattooing by hand, requires special technique, and only a few traditional tattooists can offer tebori. A big difference between Western and Japanese styles is a background of designs. In western style, the designs usually do not have a shaded background, but the Japanese style has such a background.

Bath Girls and Tattoo

2008-03-29T13:36:00.001-07:00

Tattoos and sensuality are often connected. Nakano (1988) in her book titled Irezumishi no onnatachi (the wives of tattooists) states that tattoos have sex appeal, uncovering the practice of tattooing among Japanese women involved with the sex industry."Soapland" is a place which men come in and choose a bath girl to have sexual pleasure with. "Soap" refers to a bathtub or bathroom. "Soapland" refers to the bathhouse with the brothel. However, technically, sex activities are not involved with this business. If the soap jo, bath girl of the soapland had tattoos, she would have been regarded as a "defective" product (Nakano, 1988). However, the number of tattooed girl-lovers has increased recently in order to satisfy their desire. The tattooed soap jos are becoming popular (Nakano, 1988). Some soap jos want to be covered with tattoos for their job.

The Yakuza and Tattooing

2008-03-29T13:35:00.001-07:00

The yakuza are notorious Japanese syndicate members. Their history dates back over 300 years. Their origin can be traced back to the Edo period (Kaplan and Dupro, 1986). The ancestors of the modern yakuzaused tattooing as a mark of status.

Tattoos are the greatest trademark of the yakuza. When we go to see a yakuza movie, for instance, the tattooed yakuza often show up. Rome (1975) refers to the modern yakuza as the title "The Tattooed Men," and describes a typical scene in a yakuza movie: There is a gambling scene where somebody cheats, is discovered, the kimonos are dropped from the shoulders revealing tattoos (cheers from the audience), swords appear and blood is spilled." (p.213)

Kaplan and Dupro (1986) state that approximately 73 percent of the yakuza have tattoos. Among the yakuza, undergoing tattooing was a test to show their strength. The traditional Japanese tattoo takes a long time to complete. To wear the full body tattoo, one needs patience to endure the time and pain. For some yakuza, tattoos are a proof of strength, courage, toughness and masculinity. Besides, wearing tattoos makes them feel a sense of solidarity as a member of the organization. Such tattoos mean loyalty or faithfulness towards the organization.

Although the yakuza began to accept tattoos as their custom in the Edo period, it was notan outstanding figure in those days. Following Japan's economic growth, the yakuza population rapidly increased, and became more often involved in criminal activities. Because of the outlaws' path, we are likely to associate tattooing with the yakuza, and eventually the fixed notion that tattooing has a criminal aspects was built up.

However, in recent years the number of the yakuza with tattoos has been decreasing. Because of increased law enforcement, the yakuza have lost many their sources of income. Moreover, Kaplan and Dupro (1986) point out that the nature of the yakuza has been changing. Although devoting one's life to the organization was the way to survive in the yakuza world, today's young yakuza become less obedient at each step. The younger yakuza are forsaking the full-body pictorial tattoos. They opt instead for a simple line drawing or phrase on their upper arm, more similar to the tattoos of Western youths. The reason, says researcher Hoshino, is not a change in aesthetics: the old-style tattoos cost a fortune, and are simply no longer worth either the physical or financial stress (Kaplan and Dupro, 1986: 273).

Since the Act for Prevention of Unlawful Activities by Boryokudan (syndicate) members was passed in 1992, the influence of the yakuzahas weakened. According to recent reports (Asahi shinbun, 1997), many yakuza try to remove their tattoos and have operations to replace missing fingers in order to return to mainstream society. Moreover, an article in a current magazine (Vollmann, 1999) tells that one yakuza continued to be untattooed. When he was young, his boss had forbidden him to be tattooed on the grounds that fashions change (p.77). Thus, even the yakuza themselves admit that their tattoos are not acceptable. People with tattoos are likely to be stigmatized and regarded as misfits in Japanese society. There is another interesting response about tattoos by the yakuza boss (Vollmann, 1999). The interviewer asks if the yakuza wear certain types of tattoos. The yakuza boss replies: "No, you can't tell. We're not a tribe." (Vollmann, 1999: 78).

To be tattooed in Japan is to abandon conventional society and go into the underworld.It is true that some yakuza tend not to have tattoos. Tattooing is no longer used as either a test of strength or a sign of solidarity among the yakuza.

The Meiji Restoration

2008-03-29T13:34:00.002-07:00

The Meiji Era (1868-1912) to the Present

The Meiji Restoration (1868) marked the beginning of modernization in Japan. The feudal system was abolished, and Japan absorbed Western culture to cultivate new attitudes and thoughts. The first principles, the Five Articles Oath, had been already enunciated in April, 1868. Morton (1994) states: "Article 4. Evil customs of the past shall be broken off and everything based upon the just laws of Nature" (p.150). He describes "evil customs of the past" as including the Tokugawa shogunate and all its works and that the "just law of Nature" is a universal phrase.

This concept was familiar in the West but was also known to the East in fundamental Confucian and Taoist thought (Morton, 1994: 150). Adoption of the new western clothing drastically changed Japan's daily landscape. Frock coats and bowler hats for men, corseted waists and bustles for women became fashionable - they proclaimed their wearers a new breed of Japanese, persons fully the equal of Europeans and Americans (Dalby, 1993: 9-10).

Japan's goal was to become a member of the leading nations as a civilized and sophisticated country. The government regarded tattooing as a sign of barbarism, and in 1872, prohibited all tattooing, including the tribal tattooing by the Ainu and the Ryukyu.

The influence of the ban on tattooing spread to literature. Tanizaki Junichiro, one of the famous novelists in modern period, published a book titled Shisei (Tattooer),in 1910. It is the story of a young tattoo master and a beautiful girl. Tanizaki's work was originally conceived in a contemporary setting, but later placed in the Edo period (McCallum, 1988: 134).There was perhaps social pressure in those days.

Ironically, the prohibition of tattooing applied only to the Japanese, not to foreign people. Many visitors from overseas were impressed by Japanese tattoo designs. Sailors, from the highest to the lowest ranks, got tattooed when they arrived in Japanese ports.Burchett (1958) tells about meeting one Japanese tattoo master, Hori Chyo in the Meiji era. According to Burchett (1958), Hori Chyo had tattooed many British aristocrats, including the Duke of Clarence, the Duke of York (later, King George V), and the Czarevitch of Russia (later, Czar Nicholas II). As a result, Japanese tattoos were exported to oversea countries, and gained a reputation outside of Japan. Nakano (199?) cites newspaper articles regarding popularity of Japanese tattoos in the West.

In 1948, the prohibition of tattooing was lifted. However, tattooing was outlawed among youths below the age of18 in a bid to protect minors, and those who encouraged minors to get tattooed were penalized (Nakano, 199?).

Because of its historical background, the practice of tattooing retains a negative and dark image in Japan today. Some tattooists do not have signs for their studios even though tattooing is now legal.

Nakano (1988) reveals how tattooing is viewed in Japanese society. A sumo wrestler, while wrestling,covered his tattoos on his left arm, and a professional boxer, Mike Tyson, hid his tattoo to appear in a Japanese commercial (Nakano, 1988).

Nakano (1988) herself is the wife of a tattoo master, and her body is covered with tattoos. She says that people are scared of her tattoos after discovering them on her body. Of course, she does not mean to scare them.That is a typical reaction towards the full body tattoo in Japan.

The Origin of Pictorial Tattooing

2008-03-29T13:34:00.001-07:00

Pictorial tattoos first appeared after the Horeki era (1751-1764) (Iizawa; 1973, Nakano; 199u, Tamabayashi; 1956, Van Gulik; 1982, Yoshioka;1996). The first stage of the pictorial tattoos was relatively small, and the designs were family crests or evil images such as a severed human head. Even though people began to have a couple of tattoos on their body, each piece was scattered at random, not unified.

The development of the art ofukiyo-echanged the style of Japanese tattoo. The ukiyo-eare pictures of "the floating world," mainly depicting the landscape, people's daily life including entertainment such as kabuki-plays or the pleasure quarters. The images were first illustrated in color prints. In the 1650's woodblock printing began to translate the ukiyo-e into widely available books (Smith, 1988).Forrer (1988) and Hillier (1981) point out the difference between Western drawings and Japanese counterparts. While Western drawings were used in a wide range of materials, Japanese drawings were invariably executed in brush and ink. The limited materials in Japan led to the development of sumie or suibokuga, monochrome ink paintings, and influenced the revival of tattooing. Later, colors were imported from foreign countries.

Japanese tattooing was inspired by traditional arts. The brush would be altered to a bundle of tattooing needles. Tattooing became the popular art among the lower class.The Chinese legendary story, the Suikoden, the "Water Margin", affected the tattoo designs. The Suikoden described the adventures of legendary heroes. It was first translated from Chinese to Japanese by Okajima Kanzan in 1757. Many artists described the Suikoden in different versions. Utagawa Kuniyoshi, the ukiyo-e artist, illustrated the Suikoden in 1827 and it gained popularity among townspeople. His work is still used as the basis of tattoo designs today. Kuniyoshi's warrior-prints inspired the development of the full body tattoo.

The heroes' bravery and spirit fascinated many people in those days. The characters of the heroes in the Suikoden are full of chivalry. They were not malicious. They robbed to save the weak from evil. Therefore, many Edo citizens' spirit of iki perhaps shared the Suikoden heroes. The commoners admired those heroes. The most popular figure in the Suikoden was Kyumonryu Shishin, who has tattoos of nine dragons. In competition with each other. Many townspeople had dragon tattoos like the Shishin's. Besides, the image of a dragon was considered to summon water, and was popular among firemen (Tamabayashi, 1956).

There were many fires in Edo city through the Tokugawa period (Nishiyama, 1997), and the system of firemen was well developed. That is why the design of the dragon is often seen. There is no doubt that Kuniyoshi's illustrations of the Suikoden had an impact on tattoo designs. Tattooing had a great vogue among the lower orders in Japan during the early nineteenth century, and Kuniyoshi's warrior-prints were extensively used as designs for this minor art (Robinson, 1961: 21).

There are two reasons why the Japanese full body tattoo was developed: the existence of sumie or, monochromatic ink paintings, and the establishment of clothing fashion. Before the appearance ofukiyo-e paintings, the technique of ink painting was brought to Japan from China. In the early period of pictorial tattoos, only outlines of designs were tattooed. It is called sujibori, outlining. A few colors were used for tattooing: black ink, vermilion and brown (Iizawa, 1973). Tattooing then applied bokashibori, shading, proceeding from the ink painting techniques. The characteristics of this style included the use of gradation and the strength that black ink and a paint brush make. The use of various colors made the designs more colorful and established the pictorial tattooing style.

The idea of the full body tattoo comes from samurai warriors' costumes called jimbaori, a sleeveless campaign coat (Iizawa, 1973). It looked like a vest and was easy to slip on over armor (Minnich, 1963: 32). The samurai had their favorite patterns on the back of the jimbaori. They tended to like heroic designs and perhaps wanted to show their courage and pride. Some designs represented a guardian deity or adragon.

The first style of tattoo was done only on the back (Iizawa, 1973). Gradually, the tattoo designs extended to the shoulders, arms, and thighs, and the tattooed pictures finally came to appear on the whole body. Tamabayashi (1956) illustrates typical shapes, patterns and designs of the full body tattoos in detail. Van Gulik (1982) refers to one of the tattoo patterns as munawari. Tattooing over the entire front of the upper part of the torso with the exception of a vertical strip running from the chest to the abdomen, gave the effect of an unbuttoned vest (p.101).

The term, iki, meaning stylishness, smartness or chic, symbolizes the nature of the Edo culture and the spirit of common people. The sense of iki was raised from resistance towards social restrictions and pressure in those days. Common people were forced to wear only plain clothes. There was rivalry with the superior class. Tattooing was born out of a sense of competition. The commoners began to show off iki to each other, and competing iki was called date or date shin (a sense of stylishness). The word, iki in English would be "the coolest" things.Having the full body tattoos was iki, and achieved the peak of popularity. Especially, during the Bunka Bunsei period (1804-1830), the number of tattooed individuals was rapidly growing, and professional tattooists began to appear.

The Tokugawa government prohibited tattooing in order to control the people's life and customs. However, it had no effect on the commoners' attitudes. Some authors explain that merchants were not allowed to wear gorgeous kimonos because of the rigid social system. So they turned to tattooing instead. Tamabayashi (1956), however, argues that the wealthy mchants did not wear tattoos.The majority of tattooed people were townspeople, especially scaffold constructors, rickshaw men, and gamblers. Amongst merchants, who were also a part of the townspeople, the practice of tattooing was rarely seen. The wealthy merchants did not wear tattoos. Even though some merchants with small business such as fish sellers got tattooed, it was exceptional (Tamabayashi, 1956: 184, translated by the author).

Iizawa (1973) states "samurai and upper-class merchants did not have tattoos, but most artisans (labor workers) did get tattooed" (p.167). The samurai or the merchants were more likely to hide their tattoos, because of their social status or position. This probably resulted from the prevalence of Confucianism among the samurai and the merchants.

Penal Tattooing

2008-03-29T13:32:00.000-07:00

The Tokugawa government had financial problems. Yoshimune became the eighth shogun in 1716, and began to reform the policy. One of the biggest changes was frugality. He himself reduced his expenditures, and ordered all other officials to cut the cost of departments. The townspeople were also forced to lower their standard of living. They were not allowed to wear showy and luxurious garments.

The most crucial shift was the practice of tattooing as a form of punishment in 1720 (Nakano; 199u, Tamabayashi; 1956, Van Gulik; 1982), which replaced the amputation of nose and ears. Tattooing as punishment did not pertain to the samurai class (Van Gulik, 1982). According to Yoshimune's code, robbers as well as murderers were sentenced to the death. Crimes such as extortion, swindling and fraud were punished by tattooing. The criminals were tattooed with a black ring around an arm for each offense, or with a Japanese character on the forehead.

The tattoo became a mark of punishment, used by the authorities to ostracize the outlaws from society. While the purpose of this penalty was to identify criminals and repeat offenders, tattooing as punishment became a vicious circle. The tattooed criminals were ostracized by society throughout their whole lives. Some of them abandoned all hope, and sank to a level of despair and a cycle of crimes. Consequently, the penal system formed a solitary minority group, called eta class, the social outcasts.For this reason, ordinary people became afraid of tattooed people. The people with the penal tattoos often used the records incised on the skin for illicit purposes. They hardly rebuilt their trust in society. Some of them abandoned themselves to despair and repeated crimes. This phenomenon made other people feel frightened and they came to see any tattooed person as a criminal or evil. Therefore, showing tattoos was perceived as a threat to society.

Eventually, the custom of penal tattooing was abolished in 1870 after being practiced for 150 years.

The Vow Tattoo

2008-03-29T13:31:00.000-07:00

By : KHISOBORI

The term, irebokuro means tattoo, and was used in the Edo period. Ire or ireru, means to insert, and bokuro or hokuro is a beauty spot. In the early Edo period, tattoo was like a dot, not pictorial yet.Irebokuro originated among the yujos, or legal prostitutes. The custom of irebokuro probably parallels the establishment of legal prostitution (Tamabayashi, 1956).According to Tamabayashi (1956), the major group of people who accepted irebokuro was the yujos, and the second was the geishas. Tattooing was rare among ordinary girls. On the other hand, in the case of the male population, the majority was the yujo or the geisha's clients or womanizers. Tattooed priests and youngsters were sometimes seen.

Tamabayashi (1956) describes one of the old patterns of irebokuro: a man and a woman hold their hands together, and get a mole-like tattoo on each hand where the tip of the thumb reached. Irebokuro was a reminder for lovers, and showed a vow of eternal love. It is said that some yujos wore tattoos of their lover's name and the Japanese character for life (inochi). It symbolized the strength of their pledge of love. Tamabayashi also mentions irebokuro in homosexuality between priests and young boys. These tattoos were also called kishobori, the vow tattoo.The yujos were likely to choose to be tattooed on the arm, especially the inside of the arm and near the armpit, not the forearm (Tamabayashi, 1956). Their tattoos probably meant secret affairs, forbidden love or personal desires. The purpose of the yujo's tattoos was one of serious promise, or nuptial proof, or eternal love, and the pledge of the heart and soul towards sincere love (Tamabayashi, 1956:24).For others, the irebokuro was perhaps just a tool to please and keep their customers, and thus to succeed as a highest ranked courtesan.

The geishas and the yujos made up strange customs to keep their clients. Several authors (Fujimoto; 1915, Tamabayashi; 1956, Seigle; 1993, Van Gulik; 1982) cite examples of the geisha's behavior.

1. A woman gave a written pledge to her lover.
2. She tattooed the lover's name in her arm.
3. She cut her hair.
4. She cut her little finger.
5. She tore off the nail of one of her fingers.
6. She stabbed her elbow or thigh (Fujimoto, 1915: 129).

In the literature of the Edo period, the practice of the pledge letter, tattooing, finger-cutting, hair-cutting, nail-tearing are often described (Seigle; 1993, Tamabayashi; 1956, Van Gulik; 1982). The purpose of the pledge letter was to get a few drops of blood from both the man and the woman (Seigle, 1993).Tattooing was similar to the pledge letter. Many yujos and geishas tattooed themselves to please their customers.

However, tattooing was considered inelegant and indiscreet among high-ranking geisha, and they tended to avoid it (Seigle, 1993). Some customers insisted on it and the geisha were forced to submit. At the same time, they had to know how to erase tattoos. The courtesans cauterized tattoos with moxa (dried herb) and fire (Seigle; 1993, Tamabayashi; 1956,Van Gulik; 1982). The tattoo could be the cause of trouble if the courtesans had several different customers. There are records of the yujos and the geishas repeatedly having to tattoo over or remove old tattoos whenever their customers changed.Finger and hair-cutting, and nail-tearing were more serious tokens than tattooing one's name because they were obviously visible. The extreme form of love was shinju, double suicide. Many lovers committed double suicides, and this phenomenon peaked from the Genroku era (1688-1703) to 1720's (Seigle, 1993). By the late Tokugawa era, kishobori was no longer popular.

Japanese Tattooing from the Past to the Present

2008-03-29T13:28:00.000-07:00

Japanese Tattooing from the Past to the Present
by Mieko Yamada (© 2000 by Mieko Yamada)
The Jomon to the pre-Edo period

The origin of tattooing in Japan has been traced back to the Jomon period (10,000 B. C. ~ 300 B. C.). Jomon means "pattern of rope." Many ceramic pots with markings of rope were found in that period. Clay figurines produced in this period are called dogu. Scholars consider that some dogus show tattoo-like markings on their faces and bodies. The oldestdogus whose faces have a depiction of tattooing were found near Osaka in 1977. They are estimated to date from dated the fifth century B. C. (Richie,1980).During the Yayoiperiod (300 B. C. ~ 300 A. D.) clay figurines with tattoo markings were also found (Yoshioka, 1996).

The custom of tattooing in Japan is described in the third century Chinesehistory, Gishiwajinden,which is the oldest record mentioning Japan. Japan is called Wa, and the custom of tattooing is mentioned in this text:

The men of Wa tattoo their faces and paint their bodies with designs. They are fond of diving for fish and shells. Long ago they decorated their bodies in order to protect themselves from large fish. Later these designs became ornamental. Body painting differs among the various tribes. The position and size of the designs vary according to the rank of individuals.... They smear their bodies with pink and scarlet just as we Chinese use powder (Tsunoda and Goodrich, cited by Dalby, 1993: 22).

The Kofun period (300 A. D.- 600 A. D.) came after the Yayoi era. The word kofun means an old tomb. In this period, hilly tombs in many places were made, and the clay figures in the shape of dolls, horses and huts were also found in the tombs. The clay figures are called haniwa, which is the counterpart of dogu in the Jomon era. Markings on some haniwaare regarded as patterns of tattoos.

In 622 A. D., an envoy of China recorded the custom of Japanese tattooing in Zuisho. There is a section, "Ryukyu kokuden" in it, and the practice of tattooing among the Ryukyu women is described. The Ryukyu islands are today in Okinawa prefecture, the southern most part of Japan. When it was an independent country it was threatened by the rule of China and Japan.

This record, Zuisho, shows Okinawa and Taiwan already established trading in those days. However, it is not confirmed whetherRyukyu in Zuisho itself refers to Okinawa or Taiwan. Many scholars state that the design of Okinawan tattoo is similar to the tattooing style in a part of aboriginal Taiwanese (Yoshioka, 1996). The Okinawan tattoo may be connected not only with the custom of tattooing in Taiwan but also with South East Asia.

It was not until the eighth century that the first Japanese printed books appeared. The Kojiki (712 A. D.) mentions that there are two types of tattoos. One is a mark of distinction on a man of very high status, and the other is to identify criminals (McCallum, 1988). Later, the Chronicles of Japan, the Nihonshoki, was complied in 720 A.D. According to the Nihonshoki, a person named Azumi no Murajihamako was tattooed as punishment for treason. This was an example of the punitive application of tattooing.McCallum (1988) summarizes the practice of Japanese tattooing during the Kofun period. In the early Kofun period, the tattoo persisted as a socially acceptable practice. However, it seems to have acquired negative associations, perhaps from the middle of the period (McCallum, 1988).

Between 600 A.D. and 1600, there is little literature regarding the custom of tattooing. Tamabayashi (1956) and Van Gulik (1982) state the Joei Code issued in 1232 mentions penal tattooing. According to some scholars (Richie; 1980, Van Gulik; 1982), tattooing was used to mark and distinguish the social outcasts. Consequently, the people who were tattooed as punishment formed minority groups, called eta (the euphemism of village people) and hinin (non-humans).

Iizawa (1973) and Tamabayashi (1956) report that the custom of tattooing is also found among samurai warriors in the sixteenth century. In certain areas, the samurai had tattoos for identification.

Soldiers wore armor and had other identifying belongings, of course, but scavengers often stripped dead bodies on a battlefield , which made identification difficult. Tattoos offered certain identification

(Iizawa, 1973; 252).

During the Tensho era (1573~1591), the samurai soldiers of the Satsuma clan (now Kagoshima region) were tattooed with Japanese characters on the upper arms. However, this information is not clearly confirmed.

Tattooing in the Ainu and the Ryukyu
Ryukyu tattooing was first mentioned in 1461. However, some scholars consider the description of tattooing in the Zuisho of 622 to be the oldest record of the Ryukyu tattoo even though this information is still speculative (Yoshioka, 1996).The oldest reports of Ainu tattoos were recorded by an Italian researcher, Girolamo de Angelis in 1612 and 1621 (Yoshioka, 1996). The Ainus were tattooed on the face as well as the back of the hands and arms. The tattoos were done around the lips, cheeks, the forehead or the eyebrows.There are several motivations for Ainu tattooing: cosmetic purposes, tribal purposes, sexual maturity, religious purposes and adornment. Although only the Ainu women's tattoos were mentioned in most cases, it was also reported that the men were tattooed in some regions (Takayama; 1969, Yoshioka; 1996).

Ainu girls were first tattooed when they were 10 to 13 years old. Some women started when they were 5 or 6 years old. Their tattoos were completed by the time they reached marriageable age.The patterns of the Ainu tattoos are related to their tribal clothing.

Tosabayashi (1948) presents the study on the patterns of the Ainu tattoo in detail. He mentions that the patterns of the tattoos are similar to the chastity belt that the Ainu women wore, and that Ainu tattoos symbolize virtue or purity. The Ainu tattoo is also used for protection from the atrocities committed by other tribes.

The Ryukyu tattoos, on the other hand, were done on only the back of the hands, including the fingers, the wrists and the knuckles. There are no examples offacial tattoo (Glacken, 1955). Tattooing is not practiced in every Ryukyu island. In some parts, both men and women got tattooed, but in others, only women had tattoos. In other parts of Ryukyu, no one was tattooed. The age at which tattooing began was different, depending on the areas of the Ryukyu islands or generation (Yoshioka, 1996).The Ryukyu tattooing symbolized religious beliefs, sexual maturity, indication of marriage, body adornment, distinction of sex, and tribal customs. Glacken (1955) reports that the purpose of the Ryukyu women's tattooing was to prevent being carried off to brothels in Japan. Kidnappings were frequent occurrences in the Ryukyu history and the Ryukyu people knew that the Japanese disliked tattooed women (Haring, 1969).

There are examples of therapeutic tattooing among the Ainu and the Ryukyu. It was believed that tattoos would heal the affected parts (Yoshioka, 1996). This is different from the medical tattoos, but more likely to be magical. The Edo period (1600 -1867)

Socio-cultural Background
Tokugawa Ieyasu, the first shogun of the Edo period, unified the country and set political power in Edo (the present Tokyo). He set the rigid social system and divided it into four classes, shi (samurai warriors), no (peasants), ko (artisans) and sho (merchants). These ranks were based on Confucianism. Samurai warriors were the highest rank. Peasants and artisans were a higher status than merchants, because they contributed to the country as producers. In those days, taxes were paid with the staple food of rice. Therefore, the peasants were seen as second class citizens.Ieyasu continued to issue strict regulations, stressing religious thoughts. In 1614, he banned Christianity. Ieyasu's proclamation against Christians clearly states that Japan is the country of the gods. Interestingly, Ieyasu also quotes the Confucian doctrine. Kung-fu-tze also said: "Body, hair and skin we have received from our father and mother; not to injure them is the beginning of filial piety. To preserve one's body is to revere god"

(Ballu, 1945: 131). Filial piety is one of the important elements in the Confucian philosophical thoughts, and consists of filial duties toward parents: obedience, responsibility, and loyalty. It is the foundation of feudal ethics. Furthermore, Neo-Confucian philosopher, Chu Hsi's system was later guided by Hayashi Razan, one of the famous scholars of the early Edo era. Chu Hsi emphasizes human relationships in the Five Human Relations: between father and son, ruler and subject, husband and wife, older and younger brother, and friends (Sansom, 1963).

The Buke Shohatto (Rules for the Military Houses) was announced in 1615, and was the fundamental code of the samurai. It consists of thirteen clauses, and strictly mentions the way of the samurai in daily life from education to marriage, including a dress code. The tenth clause in the Buke Shohatto states: "All costumes and ornaments are to be appropriate to the wearer's rank, and not extravagant in colour or pattern (Sansom, 1963:8). The restrictions about costumes in the Edo period were very strict. Ieyasu

issued the orders regarding clothing repeatedly during his regime. As for commoners, the dress code was also established in detail (Dalby; 1983 and 1993, Minnich; 1963, Sansom; 1963, Tanida and Koike; 1989).

Following the development of the samurai culture in the city of Edo, the population of common people also grew in both rural and urban areas. Merchants, the lowest class, gradually gained power by the eighteenth century and this led to the growth of the economy. The rich merchants were often employed by government officials and became richer than the samurai.Thanks to the economic prosperity, the standard of living among townspeople was improving. They enjoyed a peak of material wealth and a flourishing of the arts.

Considered in retrospect, the most attractive feature of this era is the gaiety of colour and pattern in clothing and decoration which reflected the mood of the times. It is an especially interesting aspect of the social history of Japan that the rise of a prosperous class of shopkeepers and craftsmen was accompanied by a lively creative phase in the arts (Sansom, 1963: 153).

This is called the Genroku era (1688-1704), in other words, ukiyo, or

"floating world." The word ukiyo stems from the Buddhist expression, and originally means "the dark, shifting world of existence, or transience of life." As society changed through the centuries, the meaning became "floating world." The novelist Ryoi initially used this term in his work, Ukiyo Monogatari,"Tales of the Floating World" (Williams, 1983). He describes the life in the early Edo era, that is, the ukiyo world.

The wealthy townspeople surrounding him were not worried about future salvation but rather enjoyed their materialistic, temporal existences and those pleasures appealing directly to the senses. They lived for the moment : "the fleeting moment" (Williams, 1983: 1).Many prominent art works were produced, and chonin bunka, culture of the townspeople, was fully developed in this period.

Japanese Watercolor

2008-03-29T13:12:00.001-07:00

This picture Japanese Watercolor

The Japanese tattoo

2008-03-29T13:04:00.000-07:00

The Japanese tattoo is an ancient art. Haniwa, small clay figurines, some bearing facial tattoos, have been found in tombs that date from the fourth or fifth century. It is thought that the tattoo signified social rank or warded off evil spirits and wild animals. Over time, the custom faded and it became the fate of criminals, in the old Chinese manner, to be tattooed on the face as a form of punishment. It has been suggested that, in a society where ostracism is the most severe punishment, tattooing became a decorative art as people sought to hide these incriminating symbols of shame within more elaborate shapes and patterns.

Love and religion seem to have been significant inspiration for early Japanese tattoos. Lovers, courtesans and lowly prostitutes would often have the name of a lover written on the inner arm, with the kanji for inochi (life), symbolizing a pledge of eternal love, added. Edo period (1603-1867) literature abounds with references to pledge tattoos, or irebokuro as they were known.

A singular aspect of the Japanese tattoo is that, rather than being almost exclusively a mark of punishment or an element of ritual, it became an immensely popular fashion statement among working-class urbanites of the late 18th century to mid-19th century, despite a ban on tattoos from 1789 to 1801. That was when the tattoo found favor among the growing legions of laborers, rickshaw pullers, criminals, firefighters, artisans and women of the pleasure quarters. The designs flowered from simple messages, invocation or pledge into fuller pictorial forms capable of integrating complex secondary design motifs into a grander overall concept.

For the merchants and samurai who swarmed into the entertainment quarters of Edo, people who wore tattoos were an exotic sight. There were even tattoo exhibitions, with judges and prizes. Tattoos have never received official favor in Japan, however, and are still frowned upon in polite society. During the Edo period expressions of individuality among the masses were invariably interpreted as subversive, a potential cause of social unrest, and accordingly repressed. Tattooing was an obvious target for the government and it was frequently banned, although the bans were largely ignored.

The Japanese tattoo is closely akin to the Japanese woodblock print in design, coloring and techniques, and the popularity of artists like Utagawa Kunisada and Kitagawa Utamaro, who all vigorously depicted the figures of tattooed actors, courtesans and gods, and whose work had enormous appeal at all social levels, coincided with the blossoming of tattoo art among the plebeian masses. As the ukiyo-e woodblock print gradually acquired more color and complexity of design, so the motifs and pigments used in tattooing grew more ambitious and subtle.

Edo firefighters, colorful characters who might almost have stepped out of fiction themselves, were among the first to wear full-body tattoos-works that cover everything but hands, feet and head. Different groups of firefighters displayed different preferences in their tattoo designs, but all seem to have included a protective water symbol of some kind, usually a carp or water dragon. Although tattoos were still regarded with suspicion by the authorities and condemned as "deleterious to public morals," a newly affluent middle class, enthusiastic patrons in all fields of art, were showing much curiosity and appreciation of tattooing, though never going quite as far as to submit to one themselves.

With the opening of the country in the 1860s, renewed efforts were made to suppress tattooing. This time, the ban was not out of concern that personal liberties would encourage an uprising among the masses, but out of concern that the newly arriving emissaries from the West would denounce tattooing as barbaric. Tattoo artists suddenly found that, while their regular Japanese clientele had dried up, they were being asked to do tattoos on the very foreigners whom the authorities sought to protect.

The contrasting national flowers of Japan and Korea

2008-02-16T23:56:00.000-08:00

The Japanese Meteorological Agency can usually be counted on to nail their annual cherry blossom forecasts, and they were spot on again this year, too. The local TV station led off their dinner-hour news program earlier this week with an agency update reporting that the buds on the area’s cherries would start opening on the 25th. A walk in the park around the prefectural offices this morning confirmed that the trees had indeed begun to flower Over the next month, the media will continue to provide daily updates on the sakura zensen, or cherry blossom front, as the location of those areas with newly blooming trees moves gradually up the archipelago until the last of the flowers emerge for the spring in Hokkaido at the end of April.

It’s no surprise that the Japanese should get it right when the subject is cherries. Hanami, or parties for viewing cherry blossoms, first became popular among the aristocracy during the Heian period (8th to 12th centuries), and reached an extreme with Toyotomi Hideyoshi in the late 16th century. The custom spread among the common people during the Edo period, and it’s still a part of the annual cycle of events today. Everyone’s been to a hanami at least once.

Spend some time in Japan, and you’ll soon understand the reason; a park with cherry blossoms in full bloom is stunning in its loveliness. Is there any other country in which such a commonplace act as a picnic in the park is infused with such natural poetry? Yes, some at a hanami may drink too much and sing too loudly, but isn’t the purpose of a party to eat, drink, and be merry? Besides, the revelry seldom gets out of hand, and the Japanese have a knack for tuning out the neighbors when the occasion demands.

One reason the cherries have such a hold on the popular imagination is that their peak period of beauty is so brief. The entire season for the flowers lasts little longer than three weeks from beginning to end. For the Japanese, the cherries are a symbol of the impermanence of life, and they frequently use the word hakanai (short-lived, fleeting, transitory) to describe both the flowers and the evanescence of existence. In addition, the verb chiru, meaning to be scattered or fall, is used to describe the scattering of the cherry petals. In some instances, the same word also is used to mean death. Accounts of the Second World War often speak of the many young lives that “chiru” on the battlefield.

These ephemeral qualities are one facet of a fascinating contrast between the informal national flowers of Japan and Korea. While it may not occupy the same place in the Korean imagination as cherries do in Japan, the Rose of Sharon (mugunghwa in Korean, mukuge in Japanese) serves as a similar symbol. The cherry, as we’ve seen, is a fragile blossom that quickly reaches its peak and just as quickly disappears. The Rose of Sharon is the opposite. A hardy plant, it continues to bloom from June to October through the hottest months of summer, and each plant produces several thousand blossoms a year.

The Koreans are said to find this hardiness appealing. One adjective that often crops up in Japanese descriptions of Koreans is shibutoi—tenacious and enduring. Tenacity is an essential survival trait when you’re the runt in a neighborhood that includes the Chinese, Russians, Japanese, and Mongolians.

Korean references to the national flower date as far back as the Silla Kingdom, (57 BC-935 AD), which metaphorically referred to itself as Mugunghwa Country. The South Korean national anthem, Aegukga, has the line, “Mugunghwa filled three thousand li of splendid rivers and mountains…” (A li is roughly 2.44 miles, making this lyric an echo of the phrase about cherries in the old Japanese song Sakura, Sakura: “miwatasu kagiri”, or as far as the eyes can see.) One of the trains in the national railway is called the Mugunghwa. And in a good-humored touch, the Koreans use pictures of the mugunghwa flower rather than stars to rate hotels.

There is a theory in Japan that the cherry is so popular because the Japanese prefer flowers that are falling rather than flowers that are blooming. That would explain their love for the cherry—even a relatively mild breeze is enough to send a spray of petals floating like so much pink snow. When the cherry motif is used on television, such as a backdrop for the performance of a song, the blossoms are often shown fluttering to the ground, rather than in a static scene. The attraction for the Japanese is the brevity of the beauty, which contains an intrinsic poignancy and tension.

The meaning of the underlying Chinese characters for mugunghwa, however, is quite the opposite. The characters are 無窮, which is pronounced mukyu in Japanese. It means endless or eternal.

Japanese Bra

2008-02-16T23:52:00.000-08:00

Japanese Bra -title may seem to you similar to something like "Japanese Cat". Cats and pets have no similar nationality to people. So how can brassieres have? We could take a manufacturing standpoint, but it wouldn't be more interesting than talk about DVD players made in Japan.

Bra, by all it's appeal and spirit, is clearly a product from the west. Japan didn't know bra until Japanese started wearing western clothes, a change which happened sometimes during Meiji era. With wafuku, bras or any other western underwear wasn't used. With kimono, women wore only thin layer of cloth, which served the purpose of underwear that time. Under yukata, sometimes women didn't wear anything at all.

Japanese bras are said to be more decorative, more cute, and have sense of visual delight. They have tiny hearts to them, embroidiery and lace.

It is interesting that although Japan is the famous design country, the creator of latest trends that are copied by French and Italian designers, Japanese women are fairly shy to shop the cutting edge bloomy color bras you see in the shops.

It is interesting question, what kind of bra does Japanese women actually use in daily life.

In general, japanese bras seem to be more cute than sexy, more warm than cold. More childish than independent.

Compare a flower of sakura to a red rose. Sakura's scent is just a hint, an unobtrusive thought, while rose's scent is overwhelming, and something that seeks attention. Same goes with Japanese bra's color. Many Japanese women like simple white or pastel colors (or colour of sakura flower, why not). Some like black (like the branch of sakura tree). But it is rare to see heavy red, or yellow or other strong colors.

Some women find japanese bras to be more comfortable to the skin than western ones.

Japanese like to be graceful and same goes with their other clothing style. Japanese women feel they want to conform to the social concencus, the air around them. For same reason, Japanese women don't seem to wear strong parfume. This is also visible in the mainstream bra market. In contrary, Japan is one of the rare countries where it is not out of the ordinary to see women wearing fishnet stockings while shopping.

I remember reading an article of a foreign man who was overwhelmed to notice her girlfriend, a 35 years old office lady, wore a mickey mouse bra. He said it was like children's clothing, while his girlfriend saw nothing unordinary about it. Why not.

In Europe it is nothing out of the ordinary to see a couple going to lingerie shop. In Japan, I suspect people shop online. There are plenty of the shops, but mostly women go there alone.

Japan is different in the sense of bras as well. I wish Japan will keep into the various differences in the future as well.

History of japanese art

2008-01-15T15:58:00.000-08:00

Jōmon art
The first settlers of Japan, the Jōmon people (c 11000?–c 300 BC), named for the cord markings that decorated the surfaces of their clay vessels, were nomadic hunter-gatherers who later practiced organized farming and built cities with population of hundreds if not thousands. They built simple houses of wood and thatch set into shallow earthen pits to provide warmth from the soil. They crafted lavishly decorated pottery storage vessels, clay figurines called dogu, and crystal jewels.

Yayoi art
The next wave of immigrants was the Yayoi people, named for the district in Tokyo where remnants of their settlements first were found. These people, arriving in Japan about 350 BC, brought their knowledge of wetland rice cultivation, the manufacture of copper weapons and bronze bells (dōtaku), and wheel-thrown, kiln-fired ceramics.

Kofun art
The third stage in Japanese prehistory, the Kofun, or Tumulus, period (c AD 250–552), represents a modification of Yayoi culture, attributable either to internal development or external force. In this period, diverse groups of people formed political alliances and coalesced into a nation. Typical artifacts are bronze mirrors, symbols of political alliances, and clay sculptures called haniwa which were erected outside tombs.

Asuka and Nara art
During the Asuka and Nara periods, so named because the seat of Japanese government was located in the Asuka Valley from 552 to 710 and in the city of Nara until 784, the first significant invasion by Asian continental culture took place in Japan.

The transmission of Buddhism provided the initial impetus for contacts between China, Korea and Japan. The Japanese recognized the facets of Chinese culture that could profitably be incorporated into their own: a system for converting ideas and sounds into writing; historiography; complex theories of government, such as an effective bureaucracy; and, most important for the arts, new technologies, new building techniques, more advanced methods of casting in bronze, and new techniques and media for painting.

Throughout the 7th and 8th centuries, however, the major focus in contacts between Japan and the Asian continent was the development of Buddhism. Not all scholars agree on the significant dates and the appropriate names to apply to various time periods between 552, the official date of the introduction of Buddhism into Japan, and 784, when the Japanese capital was transferred from Nara. The most common designations are the Suiko period, 552–645; the Hakuho period, 645–710, and the Tenpyō period, 710–784.

The earliest Japanese sculptures of the Buddha are dated to the 6th and 7th century. They ultimately derive from the 1st-3rd century CE Greco-Buddhist art of Gandhara, characterized by flowing dress patterns and realistic rendering, on which Chinese and Korean artistic traits were superimposed.[1] They illustrate the terminal point of the Silk Road transmission of Art during the first few centuries of our era. Other examples can be found in the development of the iconography of the Japanese Fujin Wind God,[2] the Nio guardians,[3] and the near-Classical floral patterns in temple decorations.[4]

The earliest Buddhist structures still extant in Japan, and the oldest wooden buildings in the Far East are found at the Hōryū-ji to the southwest of Nara. First built in the early 7th century as the private temple of Crown Prince Shotoku, it consists of 41 independent buildings. The most important ones, the main worship hall, or Kondo (Golden Hall), and Goju-no-to (Five-story Pagoda), stand in the center of an open area surrounded by a roofed cloister. The Kondo, in the style of Chinese worship halls, is a two-story structure of post-and-beam construction, capped by an irimoya, or hipped-gabled roof of ceramic tiles.

Inside the Kondo, on a large rectangular platform, are some of the most important sculptures of the period. The central image is a Shaka Trinity (623), the historical Buddha flanked by two bodhisattvas, sculpture cast in bronze by the sculptor Tori Busshi (flourished early 7th century) in homage to the recently deceased Prince Shotoku. At the four corners of the platform are the Guardian Kings of the Four Directions, carved in wood around 650. Also housed at Hōryū-ji is the Tamamushi Shrine, a wooden replica of a Kondo, which is set on a high wooden base that is decorated with figural paintings executed in a medium of mineral pigments mixed with lacquer.

Temple building in the 8th century was focused around the Tōdai-ji in Nara. Constructed as the headquarters for a network of temples in each of the provinces, the Tōdaiji is the most ambitious religious complex erected in the early centuries of Buddhist worship in Japan. Appropriately, the 16.2-m (53-ft) Buddha (completed 752) enshrined in the main Buddha hall, or Daibutsuden, is a Rushana Buddha, the figure that represents the essence of Buddhahood, just as the Tōdaiji represented the center for Imperially sponsored Buddhism and its dissemination throughout Japan. Only a few fragments of the original statue survive, and the present hall and central Buddha are reconstructions from the Edo period.

Clustered around the Daibutsuden on a gently sloping hillside are a number of secondary halls: the Hokkedo (Lotus Sutra Hall), with its principal image, the Fukukenjaku Kannon (the most popular bodhisattva), crafted of dry lacquer (cloth dipped in lacquer and shaped over a wooden armature); the Kaidanin (Ordination Hall) with its magnificent clay statues of the Four Guardian Kings; and the storehouse, called the Shosoin. This last structure is of great importance as an art-historical cache, because in it are stored the utensils that were used in the temple's dedication ceremony in 752, the eye-opening ritual for the Rushana image, as well as government documents and many secular objects owned by the Imperial family.

Heian art
In 794 the capital of Japan was officially transferred to Heian-kyo (present-day Kyoto), where it remained until 1868. The term Heian period refers to the years between 794 and 1185, when the Kamakura shogunate was established at the end of the Genpei War. The period is further divided into the early Heian and the late Heian, or Fujiwara era, the pivotal date being 894, the year imperial embassies to China were officially discontinued.

Early Heian art: In reaction to the growing wealth and power of organized Buddhism in Nara, the priest Kūkai (best known by his posthumous title Kōbō Daishi, 774-835) journeyed to China to study Shingon, a form of Vajrayana Buddhism, which he introduced into Japan in 806. At the core of Shingon worship are mandalas, diagrams of the spiritual universe, which then began to influence temple design. Japanese Buddhist architecture also adopted the stupa, originally an Indian architectural form, in its Chinese-style pagoda.

The temples erected for this new sect were built in the mountains, far away from the Court and the laity in the capital. The irregular topography of these sites forced Japanese architects to rethink the problems of temple construction, and in so doing to choose more indigenous elements of design. Cypress-bark roofs replaced those of ceramic tile, wood planks were used instead of earthen floors, and a separate worship area for the laity was added in front of the main sanctuary.

The temple that best reflects the spirit of early Heian Shingon temples is the Muro-ji (early 9th century), set deep in a stand of cypress trees on a mountain southeast of Nara. The wooden image (also early 9th c.) of Shakyamuni, the "historic" Buddha, enshrined in a secondary building at the Muro-ji, is typical of the early Heian sculpture, with its ponderous body, covered by thick drapery folds carved in the hompa-shiki (rolling-wave) style, and its austere, withdrawn facial expression.

Fujiwara art: In the Fujiwara period, Pure Land Buddhism, which offered easy salvation through belief in Amida (the Buddha of the Western Paradise), became popular. This period is named after the Fujiwara family, then the most powerful in the country, who ruled as regents for the Emperor, becoming, in effect, civil dictators. Concurrently, the Kyoto nobility developed a society devoted to elegant aesthetic pursuits. So secure and beautiful was their world that they could not conceive of Paradise as being much different. They created a new form of Buddha hall, the Amida hall, which blends the secular with the religious, and houses one or more Buddha images within a structure resembling the mansions of the nobility.

The Ho-o-do (Phoenix Hall, completed 1053) of the Byodoin, a temple in Uji to the southeast of Kyoto, is the exemplar of Fujiwara Amida halls. It consists of a main rectangular structure flanked by two L-shaped wing corridors and a tail corridor, set at the edge of a large artificial pond. Inside, a single golden image of Amida (c. 1053) is installed on a high platform. The Amida sculpture was executed by Jocho, who used a new canon of proportions and a new technique (yosegi), in which multiple pieces of wood are carved out like shells and joined from the inside. Applied to the walls of the hall are small relief carvings of celestials, the host believed to have accompanied Amida when he descended from the Western Paradise to gather the souls of believers at the moment of death and transport them in lotus blossoms to Paradise. Raigo paintings on the wooden doors of the Ho-o-do, depicting the Descent of the Amida Buddha, are an early example of Yamato-e, Japanese-style painting, and contain representations of the scenery around Kyoto.

E-maki: In the last century of the Heian period, the horizontal, illustrated narrative handscroll, the e-maki, came to the fore. Dating from about 1130, the illustrated 'Tale of Genji' represents one of the high points of Japanese painting. Written about the year 1000 by Murasaki Shikibu, a lady-in-waiting to the Empress Akiko, the novel deals with the life and loves of Prince Genji and the world of the Heian court after his death. The 12th-century artists of the e-maki version devised a system of pictorial conventions that convey visually the emotional content of each scene. In the second half of the century, a different, livelier style of continuous narrative illustration became popular. The Ban Dainagon Ekotoba (late 12th century), a scroll that deals with an intrigue at court, emphasizes figures in active motion depicted in rapidly executed brush strokes and thin but vibrant colors.

E-maki also serve as some of the earliest and greatest examples of the otoko-e (Men's pictures) and onna-e (Women's pictures) styles of painting. There are many fine differences in the two styles, appealing to the aesthetic preferences of the genders. But perhaps most easily noticeable are the differences in subject matter. Onna-e, epitomized by the Tale of Genji handscroll, typically deals with court life, particularly the court ladies, and with romantic themes. Otoko-e, on the other hand, often recorded historical events, particularly battles. The Siege of the Sanjō Palace (1160), depicted in the painting "Night Attack on the Sanjō Palace" is a famous example of this style.

Kamakura art
In 1180 a war broke out between the two most powerful warrior clans, the Taira and the Minamoto; five years later the Minamoto emerged victorious and established a de facto seat of government at the seaside village of Kamakura, where it remained until 1333. With the shift of power from the nobility to the warrior class, the arts had to satisfy a new audience: men devoted to the skills of warfare, priests committed to making Buddhism available to illiterate commoners, and conservatives, the nobility and some members of the priesthood who regretted the declining power of the court. Thus, realism, a popularizing trend, and a classical revival characterize the art of the Kamakura period.

Sculpture: The Kei school of sculptors, particularly Unkei, created a new, more realistic style of sculpture. The two Niō guardian images (1203) in the Great South Gate of the Tōdai-ji in Nara illustrate Unkei's dynamic suprarealistic style. The images, about 8 m (about 26 ft) tall, were carved of multiple blocks in a period of about three months, a feat indicative of a developed studio system of artisans working under the direction of a master sculptor. Unkei's polychromed wood sculptures (1208, Kōfuku-ji, Nara) of two Indian sages, Muchaku and Seshin, the legendary founders of the Hosso sect, are among the most accomplished realistic works of the period; as rendered by Unkei, they are remarkably individualized and believable images.

Calligraphy and painting: The Kegon Engi Emaki, the illustrated history of the founding of the Kegon sect, is an excellent example of the popularizing trend in Kamakura painting. The Kegon sect, one of the most important in the Nara period, fell on hard times during the ascendancy of the Pure Land sects. After the Genpei War (1180-1185), Priest Myōe of Kōzan-ji temple sought to revive the sect and also to provide a refuge for women widowed by the war. The wives of samurai had been discouraged from learning more than a syllabary system for transcribing sounds and ideas (see kana), and most were incapable of reading texts that employed Chinese ideographs (kanji). Thus, the Kegon Engi Emaki combines passages of text, written with a maximum of easily readable syllables, and illustrations that have the dialogue between characters written next to the speakers, a technique comparable to contemporary comic strips. The plot of the e-maki, the lives of the two Korean priests who founded the Kegon sect, is swiftly paced and filled with fantastic feats such as a journey to the palace of the Ocean King, and a poignant love story.

A work in a more conservative vein is the illustrated version of Murasaki Shikibu's diary. E-maki versions of her novel continued to be produced, but the nobility, attuned to the new interest in realism yet nostalgic for past days of wealth and power, revived and illustrated the diary in order to recapture the splendor of the author's times. One of the most beautiful passages illustrates the episode in which Murasaki Shikibu is playfully held prisoner in her room by two young courtiers, while, just outside, moonlight gleams on the mossy banks of a rivulet in the imperial garden.

Muromachi art
During the Muromachi period (1338-1573), also called the Ashikaga period, a profound change took place in Japanese culture. The Ashikaga clan took control of the shogunate and moved its headquarters back to Kyoto, to the Muromachi district of the city. With the return of government to the capital, the popularizing trends of the Kamakura period came to an end, and cultural expression took on a more aristocratic, elitist character. Zen Buddhism, the Ch'an sect　traditionally thought to have been founded in China in the 6th century CE, was introduced for a second time into Japan and took root.

Painting: Because of secular ventures and trading missions to China organized by Zen temples, many Chinese paintings and objects of art were imported into Japan and profoundly influenced Japanese artists working for Zen temples and the shogunate. Not only did these imports change the subject matter of painting, but they also modified the use of color; the bright colors of Yamato-e yielded to the monochromes of painting in the Chinese manner, where paintings generally only have black and white or different tones of a single color.

Typical of early Muromachi painting is the depiction by the priest-painter Kao (active early 15th century) of the legendary monk Kensu (Hsien-tzu in Chinese) at the moment he achieved enlightenment. This type of painting was executed with quick brush strokes and a minimum of detail. 'Catching a Catfish with a Gourd' (early 15th century, Taizo-in, Myoshin-ji, Kyoto), by the priest-painter Josetsu (active c. 1400), marks a turning point in Muromachi painting. Executed originally for a low-standing screen, it has been remounted as a hanging scroll with inscriptions by contemporary figures above, one of which refers to the painting as being in the "new style." In the foreground a man is depicted on the bank of a stream holding a small gourd and looking at a large slithery catfish. Mist fills the middle ground, and the background mountains appear to be far in the distance. It is generally assumed that the "new style" of the painting, executed about 1413, refers to a more Chinese sense of deep space within the picture plane.

The foremost artists of the Muromachi period are the priest-painters Shubun and Sesshu. Shubun, a monk at the Kyoto temple of Shokoku-ji, created in the painting 'Reading in a Bamboo Grove' (1446) a realistic landscape with deep recession into space. Sesshu, unlike most artists of the period, was able to journey to China and study Chinese painting at its source. 'The Long Handscroll' is one of Sesshu's most accomplished works, depicting a continuing landscape through the four seasons.: Because of secular ventures and trading missions to China organized by Zen temples, many Chinese paintings and objects of art were imported into Japan and profoundly influenced Japanese artists working for Zen temples and the shogunate. Not only did these imports change the subject matter of painting, but they also modified the use of color; the bright colors of Yamato-e yielded to the monochromes of painting in the Chinese manner, where paintings generally only have black and white or different tones of a single color.

Typical of early Muromachi painting is the depiction by the priest-painter Kao (active early 15th century) of the legendary monk Kensu (Hsien-tzu in Chinese) at the moment he achieved enlightenment. This type of painting was executed with quick brush strokes and a minimum of detail. 'Catching a Catfish with a Gourd' (early 15th century, Taizo-in, Myoshin-ji, Kyoto), by the priest-painter Josetsu (active c. 1400), marks a turning point in Muromachi painting. Executed originally for a low-standing screen, it has been remounted as a hanging scroll with inscriptions by contemporary figures above, one of which refers to the painting as being in the "new style." In the foreground a man is depicted on the bank of a stream holding a small gourd and looking at a large slithery catfish. Mist fills the middle ground, and the background mountains appear to be far in the distance. It is generally assumed that the "new style" of the painting, executed about 1413, refers to a more Chinese sense of deep space within the picture plane.

The foremost artists of the Muromachi period are the priest-painters Shubun and Sesshu. Shubun, a monk at the Kyoto temple of Shokoku-ji, created in the painting 'Reading in a Bamboo Grove' (1446) a realistic landscape with deep recession into space. Sesshu, unlike most artists of the period, was able to journey to China and study Chinese painting at its source. 'The Long Handscroll' is one of Sesshu's most accomplished works, depicting a continuing landscape through the four seasons.

Japanese art

2008-01-15T15:57:00.000-08:00

Japanese art covers a wide range of art styles and media, including ancient pottery, sculpture in wood and bronze, ink painting on silk and paper, and a myriad of other types of works of art. It also has a long history, ranging from the beginnings of human habitation in Japan, sometime in the 10th millennium BC, to the present.

Historically, Japan has been subject to sudden invasions of new and alien ideas followed by long periods of minimal contact with the outside world. Over time the Japanese developed the ability to absorb, imitate, and finally assimilate those elements of foreign culture that complemented their aesthetic preferences. The earliest complex art in Japan was produced in the 7th and 8th centuries A.D. in connection with Buddhism. In the 9th century, as the Japanese began to turn away from China and develop indigenous forms of expression, the secular arts became increasingly important; until the late 15th century, both religious and secular arts flourished. After the Ōnin War (1467-1477), Japan entered a period of political, social, and economic disruption that lasted for over a century. In the state that emerged under the leadership of the Tokugawa shogunate,organized religion played a much less important role in people's lives, and the arts that survived were primarily secular.

Painting is the preferred artistic expression in Japan, practiced by amateur and professional alike. Until modern times, the Japanese wrote with a brush rather than a pen, and their familiarity with brush techniques has made them particularly sensitive to the values and aesthetics of painting. With the rise of popular culture in the Edo period, a style of woodblock prints called ukiyo-e became a major artform and its techniques were fine tuned to produce colorful prints of everything from daily news to schoolbooks. The Japanese, in this period, found sculpture a much less sympathetic medium for artistic expression; most Japanese sculpture is associated with religion, and the medium's use declined with the lessening importance of traditional Buddhism.

Japanese ceramics are among the finest in the world and include the earliest known artifacts of their culture. In architecture, Japanese preferences for natural materials and an interaction of interior and exterior space are clearly expressed.

Today, Japan rivals most other modern nations in its contributions to modern art, fashion and architecture, with creations of a truly modern, global, and multi-cultural (or acultural) bent.

The underlying structure, drawings, and special effects

2008-01-13T22:21:00.001-08:00

As with any large scale creation involving multiple workers, a diagram of the final structure can be a handy tool. Sadly, one of my greatest weaknesses is the lack of any real drawing skill. My art is balloons. In fact, I think of a balloon as a paintbrush. I find it much easier to create with balloons than a pencil. When I do drawings of my smaller sculptures as teaching tools for others, it's only after I've already twisted the figure. I then work with a figure in front of me as I put it into two dimensional form.

I've never before worked with someone else in creating a huge balloon sculpture. I've always done it myself. I often work with constraints in mind, and as I sculpt, I shape things and modify my plan in order to make it work and make it look as good as possible. However, I had up to two dozen people working at once on this project. There was no way for me to do it myself, even if that's what I had been hired to do. What's more, I couldn't coach each person individually through the whole thing. Had I found a way to be in more than one place at time, there still would have been the language barrier. Clearly drawings were essential.

To top it all off, I was asked to send drawings a couple weeks ahead of time to make sure that my vision was the same as that of the television people. With some drawings of traditional nebuta sculptures to work from, I set out to draw my own. It was good that they asked since my understanding of what they wanted wasn't quite right. The hard part was in showign them what I wanted to do. I would have greatly preferred someone else giving me a drawing and telling me which things were important and which things allowed for my creativity. Regardless, I got through it.

Typically, I don't work with framing materials, but there were several reasons for using a framework of some sort here. The frame wasn't actually necessary in the end, which was my preference, but the insurance it provided was well worth having.

Demon

2008-01-13T22:19:00.000-08:00

The demon had to sharply contrast the samurai. We decided to make the face of the demon completely inhuman in size. Since we were very careful about the samurai's proportions, we knew that an oversized demon face would stand out against it. Anyone perusing the original sketches can see that this was not part of the original plan, but with several stumbling blocks overcome, we were able to make a single piece that stood 12 feet tall on it's own.

It doesn't take a lot of close examination to see that we built the demon head using a similar method to the samurai kimono. This allowed us to make something very large and with a very nice texture without the time necessary to make a lot of small bubbles. We also broke down the head into three distinct sections that were then attached to each other.

The mid section of the head was simply a very wide cylinder. The top portion was essentially a dish that got placed on top. Unfortunately, I took a two hour rest during which the staff decided to help me and atach that top portion. I wasn't quite ready for that and it took some interesting maneuvering to finish it all off once it was mounted on the frame.

The hardest part of the head was assembling the lower portion. Since the mid section and top were placed on the frame before the botom was completed, the head was suspended in the air with a three foot gap underneath it. We found the quickest and easiest approach to completing the bottom portion was to work downward from the lowest portion of the head until we hit the platform.

My original plans called for hair that was as full and rigid as the samurai's hair. Unfortunately, that wasn't possible due to time constraints. The simpler, faster, and still interesting look that we went with was accomplished simply by shoving fully inflated balloons into the spaces all over the top and back of the head.

The facial features were all made on the side while the head was being constructed. Finishing off the demon required some rather tall ladders and a number of hands.

Samurai

2008-01-13T22:18:00.001-08:00

The face of the samurai posed a serious challenge for a number of reasons. Not the least of which were creative differences between myself and the director of the show. That, followed with the fact that an American like myself, obviously didn't quite understand some of the things that were important on a sculpture of this sort to the Japanese folks I was working with.

What we were faced with was me trying to design something I didn't understand, and a bunch of informed Japanese trying to change the design in ways that weren't possible. We eventually managed to reach a compromise and it all came together quite satisfactorily.

As you can see from the image, a serious effort was made to capture the fierceness of a samurai warrior. We spent quite a lot of time experimenting with facial expressions. Several attempts at facial features were tossed aside until we found something everyone was happy with.

The director was being quite picky about the face, so making plans for that, he asked that the crew work on the face during the training and practice sessions in order to get a preview that he could think about for a while. It ended up being changed far more than expected before it was over. In fact, the original face was even a different color. When we started out we were very concerned about the color matching a skin tone as closely as possible. Later, it was decided to switch to the kabuki look (white face) seen on this page.

While the dimensions of the sculpture were mentioned above, the numbers seem to have very little impact on most people. In fact, to be honest, even as the designer of the figures, despite the fact that I was the one that did all of the calculations for balloon usage, the shear size of it was still rather overwhelming. As it started to take shape, I looked for ways to demonstrate it's hugeness. I think this picture of the samurai's hand does a good job.

I mentioned above the difficulty I had in understanding Japanese art. I reviewed books and web sites with images of samurais as well as other scenes to get a taste of what the staff would be looking for. The production company also provided me with a number of drawings and photos of what they wanted to see in this sculpture. After all of that, I envisioned a samurai in armor to match the fierce facial expressions they had asked for. Instead, what they wanted was a more gentle look in clothing; a nicely patterned kimono.

Kimono aside, this was a warrior, and he needed the ability to fight his mortal enemy. Therefore, a weapon was needed. All of the photos and drawings I had seen pictured a Samurai holding a spear or a sword. I chose a sword since the original plan was to show motion in the final sculpture. By using a sword, the samurai could actually slice the head off the demon. That final special effect ended up not happening, but we stuck with the sword anyway.

Assembling the pieces of the sculpture was quite a chore. The head, which was the first piece made in the practice sessions, was the very last thing to be placed in the entire construction. Positioning was therefore a challenge. I wanted nothing more than to see it in place as soon as possible. The director wanted to create a sense of accomplishment by ending with the single most important piece of the structure with all of the TV cameras rolling. That only made the task harder, and admittedly, more dramatic as the crews and other TV people started to show up and watch. Of course, that kept me in a panic with my watch in my hand the whole time. At least, upon completion, it had the look that everyone had hoped for after days of discussions and arguments.

Balloon art - Japanese style

2008-01-13T22:16:00.000-08:00

Overview

During the first week of December, 1998, I found myself in Tokyo, Japan leading a rather unusual, and rather challenging project. I spent a week training a team of Japanese celebrities and a crew from Fuji Television in balloon art. The goal was to have the celebrities build a giant balloon creation as part of a show that was to air on New Year's Day.

From the time I got the job until the time I arrived in Tokyo, I was both excited and scared. This was a chance to do a record breaking sculpture. I knew that I had all of the technical knowledge to pull it off. There was nothing I planned to do that I hadn't done dozens of times before on a smaller scale, and I had designed it all before leaving for Japan. What I didn't know was Japanese, and I needed to transfer the knowledge I had into the heads of a crew that I was about to meet. All of this was to happen through a translator.

So, here's the scoop on the project. I was hired as an instructor to teach the 8 Japanese celebrities (comedians, actors, and a model) how to do balloon art. In some respects this was the Japanese equivalent of the American Circus of the Stars. Celebrities learn skills that they wouldn't otherwise use and compete against each other. This particular group was learning balloon art and had to put their work on display. Rather than just letting us start with the simple stuff, I had to teach them how to do a really large creation. The object to be constructed was a nebuta - a samurai warrior fighting a demon. It measured 8 meters wide, 4.5 meters tall, and 4 meters deep. To take it even further, it was decided that there should be motion in all of this. I designed it so that the Samurai's arm would move, and he would chop the head off of the demon with his sword. In theory this isn't difficult. I've made other big things that move. It's just time consuming. Actually making it happen with 8 celebrities that can only schedule 2 hours at a time for training and that have never touched twisty balloons is another issue entirely.

To make this a little more doable, it was decided that they would provide me with seven staff members that would actually do the work. These were people that could devote the entire week, day and night if necessary, to this project. The camera was just being used to capture the celebrities working one-on-one with me. The Japanese speaking staff was to work off camera with the celebrities to walk them through the things I had taught them. The staff was to be in the background, even though they were doing the bulk of the work. Once the project got going, the stars were very cooperative and put in far more effort than I expected, although a few were more interested in playing with the camera and making themselves look funny, leaving the rest of us with even more to do.

The staff they gave me to work with was truly an incredible bunch. It took them as long to get up to speed as I had predicted, but the patience and determiantion of all of them is to be commended. They put in 10-12 hour days without complaining. They took instruction and criticism really well. Unfortunately, they wanted to only follow my instructions exactly for a while. Convincing them to take liberties on their own was quite hard. I did map out everything and tell them exactly what I wanted, but I needed them to experiment a bit so they understood the way the balloons behave. After two very long days, I could see it click, and I could actually see this coming together.

The stars themselves were an interesting group. Even though I don't know the language, we all communicated fairly well. We successfully made each other laugh. I did have one big problem and that's that I always wanted to respond to things being said and done, but I was dependent on an interpretter to make sure my lines come out right. I could always tell when the translation was successful since the room bursted into laughter. On the other hand, I often wondered if Kiyomi was really saying to them the same thing I said to her. If you've never worked with an interpretter, you can't quite imagine what it can be like.

In the end, the stars successfully built a sculpture, using approximately 15,000 twisty balloons (260's), of a traditional nebuta. I was as impressed as they were tired. It felt good to have pulled it off. I wanted them to do it since teaching them was what I was hired to do, but I really had expected that the staff would have to do most of it. Without the staff, it wouldn't have come together, but the celebrities really did have their hands in it every bit of the way and did deserve the recognition they got on TV for their efforts. Being someone that always wants to give proper credit, I wish the staff was recognized equally for the project. At least I still get to talk about them here.

My role was teacher, designer, project leader and chief worrier. I helped with a few especially challenging parts of the sculpture, but in most cases, I coached and solved problems rather than twist balloons. There was very little time for me to actually do any of the construction since I was pulled in every direction constantly. As chief worrier, I made sure to keep an eye on everything and refused to disappear for rest. The final construction was done over a 36 hour period, of which I attempted to sleep for two. Most people at least took a four hour break. I just feared that without me, a problem would come up that would hold up the whole thing. A problem did come up while I was gone, but rather than let it stop them, they continued, leaving me with two hours of work to repair what otherwise would have taken 10 minutes. I can't complain too much. The staff really thought they were helping. (Truth be told there was one problem that came up while I was there that I couldn't solve to my satisfaction.)

There was a very minimalist frame that was built since this sculpture needed to be strong enough to move outdoors, but except for the arm of the samurai, the frame had essentially no load on it, so this is as pure as you can get in terms of "balloon" art (in my opinion). The frame was nothing more than a "T" inside of both the samurai and demon and, as I said, was used as additional support so that we didn't have any unexpected surprises when we moved it after a 36 hour construction period. Most of the sculpture was actually built and assembled off of the frame so I know it could support itself.

Art Since 1867

2008-01-13T11:34:00.001-08:00

In the years after 1867, when Emperor Meiji ascended the throne, Japan was once again invaded by new and alien forms of culture.

Painting
The first response of the Japanese was open-hearted acceptance, and in 1876 the Technological Art School was opened, employing Italian instructors to teach Western methods. The second response was a pendulum swing in the opposite direction spearheaded by Okakura Kakuzo and the American Ernest Fenollosa, who encouraged Japanese artists to retain traditional themes and techniques while creating works more in keeping with contemporary taste. Out of these two poles of artistic theory developed Yoga (Western-style painting) and Nihonga (Japanese painting), categories that remain valid to the present day.

Architecture
The need to rebuild Japan after World War II proved a great stimulus to Japanese architects, and contemporary Japanese buildings rank with the finest in the world in terms of technology and formal conception. The best-known Japanese architect is Kenzo Tange, whose National Gymnasiums (1964) for the Tokyo Olympics emphasizing the contrast and blending of pillars and walls, and with sweeping roofs reminiscent of the tomo-e (an ancient whorl-shaped heraldic symbol) are dramatic statements of form and movement.

Art of the Edo Period

2008-01-13T11:32:00.000-08:00

The Tokugawa shogunate of the Edo period gained undisputed control of the government in 1603 with a commitment to bring peace and economic and political stability to the country; in large measure it was successful. The shogunate survived until 1867, when it was forced to capitulate because of its failure to deal with pressure from Western nations to open the country to foreign trade. One of the dominant themes in the Edo period was the repressive policies of the shogunate and the attempts of artists to escape these strictures. The foremost of these was the closing of the country to foreigners and the accoutrements of their cultures, and the imposition of strict codes of behavior affecting every aspect of life, the clothes one wore, the person one married, and the activities one could or should not pursue.

In the early years of the Edo period, however, the full impact of Tokugawa policies had not yet been felt, and some of Japan's finest expressions in architecture and painting were produced: Katsura Palace in Kyoto and the paintings of Sotatsu, pioneer of the Rimpa school.

Architecture
Katsura, built in imitation of Prince Genji's palace, contains a cluster of shoin buildings that combine elements of classic Japanese architecture with innovative restatements. The whole complex is surrounded by a beautiful garden with paths for walking.

Painting
Sotatsu evolved a superb decorative style by re-creating themes from classical literature, using brilliantly colored figures and motifs from the natural world set against gold-leaf backgrounds. One of his finest works is the pair of screens The Waves at Matsushima in the Freer Gallery in Washington, D.C. A century later, Korin reworked Sotatsu's style and created visually gorgeous works uniquely his own. Perhaps his finest are the screen paintings of red and white plum blossoms.

Woodblock Prints
The school of art best known in the West is that of the Ukiyo-e paintings and woodblock prints of the demimonde, the world of the kabuki theater and the brothel district. Ukiyo-e prints began to be produced in the late 17th century, but in 1764 Harunobu produced the first polychrome print. Print designers of the next generation, including Torii Kiyonaga and Utamaro, created elegant and sometimes insightful depictions of courtesans.

In the 19th century the dominant figure was Hiroshige, a creator of romantic and somewhat sentimental landscape prints. The odd angles and shapes through which Hiroshige often viewed landscape, and the work of Kiyonaga and Utamaro, with its emphasis on flat planes and strong linear outlines, had a profound impact on such Western artists as Edgar Degas and Vincent van Gogh.

Another school of painting contemporary with Ukiyo-e was Bunjinga, a style based on paintings executed by Chinese scholar-painters. Just as Ukiyo-e artists chose to depict figures from life outside the strictures of the Tokugawa shogunate, Bunjin artists turned to Chinese culture. The exemplars of this style are Ike Taiga, Yosa Buson, Tanomura Chikuden, and Yamamoto Baiitsu.

Momoyama Art

2008-01-13T11:31:00.000-08:00

In the Momoyama period (1573-1603), a succession of military leaders, such as Oda Nobunaga, Toyotomi Hideyoshi, and Tokugawa Ieyasu, attempted to bring peace and political stability to Japan after an era of almost 100 years of warfare. Oda, a minor chieftain, acquired power sufficient to take de facto control of the government in 1568 and, five years later, to oust the last Ashikaga shogun. Hideyoshi took command after Oda's assassination, but his plans to establish a hereditary shogunate were foiled by Ieyasu, who established the Tokugawa shogunate in 1603.

Architecture
Two new forms of architecture were developed in response to the militaristic climate of the times: the castle, a defensive structure built to house a feudal lord and his soldiers in times of trouble; and the shoin, a reception hall and private study area designed to reflect the relationships of lord and vassal within a feudal society. Himeji Castle (built in its present form 1609), popularly known as White Heron Castle, with its gracefully curving roofs and its complex of three subsidiary towers around the main tenshu (or keep), is one of the most beautiful structures of the Momoyama period. The Ohiroma of Nijo Castle (17th century) in Kyoto is one of the classic examples of the shoin, with its tokonoma (alcove), shoin window (overlooking a carefully landscaped garden), and clearly differentiated areas for the Tokugawa lords and their vassals.

Painting
The most important school of painting in the Momoyama period was that of the Kano, and the greatest innovation of the period was the formula, developed by Kano Eitoku for the creation of monumental landscapes on the sliding doors enclosing a room. The decoration of the main room facing the garden of the Juko-in, a subtemple of Daitokuji (a Zen temple in Kyoto), is perhaps the best extant example of Eitoku's work. A massive plum tree and twin pines are depicted on pairs of sliding screens in diagonally opposite corners, their trunks repeating the verticals of the corner posts and their branches extending to left and right, unifying the adjoining panels. Eitoku's screen, Chinese Lions, also in Kyoto, reveals the bold, brightly colored style of painting preferred by the samurai.

Hasegawa Tohaku, a contemporary of Eitoku, developed a somewhat different and more decorative style for large-scale screen paintings. In his Maple Screen, now in the temple of Chishaku-in, Kyoto, he placed the trunk of the tree in the center and extended the limbs nearly to the edge of the composition, creating a flatter, less architectonic work than Eitoku, but a visually gorgeous painting. His sixfold screen, Pine Wood (Tokyo National Museum), is a masterly rendering in monochrome ink of a grove of trees enveloped in mist.

Muromachi Art

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During the Muromachi period (1338-1573), also called the Ashikaga period, a profound change took place in Japanese culture. The Ashikaga military clan took control of the shogunate and moved its headquarters back to Kyoto, to the Muromachi district of the city. With the return of government to the capital, the popularizing trends of the Kamakura period came to an end, and cultural expression took on a more aristocratic, elitist character. Zen Buddhism, the Ch'an sect traditionally thought to have been founded in China in the 6th century AD, was introduced for a second time into Japan and took root.

Painting
Because of secular ventures and trading missions to China organized by Zen temples, many Chinese paintings and objects of art were imported into Japan and profoundly influenced Japanese artists working for Zen temples and the shogunate. Not only did these imports change the subject matter of painting, but they also modified the use of color; the bright colors of Yamato-e yielded to the monochromes of painting in the Chinese manner.

Typical of early Muromachi painting is the depiction by the priest-painter Kao (active early 15th century) of the legendary monk Kensu (Hsien-tzu in Chinese) at the moment he achieved enlightenment. This type of painting was executed with quick brush strokes and a minimum of detail. Catching a Catfish with a Gourd (early 15th century, Taizo-in, Myoshin-ji, Kyoto), by the priest-painter Josetsu (active c. 1400), marks a turning point in Muromachi painting. Executed originally for a low-standing screen, it has been remounted as a hanging scroll with inscriptions by contemporary figures above, one of which refers to the painting as being in the "new style." In the foreground a man is depicted on the bank of a stream holding a small gourd and looking at a large slithery catfish. Mist fills the middle ground, and the background mountains appear to be far in the distance. It is generally assumed that the "new style" of the painting, executed about 1413, refers to a more Chinese sense of deep space within the picture plane.

The foremost artists of the Muromachi period are the priest-painters Shubun and Sesshu. Shubun, a monk at the Kyoto temple of Shokoku-ji, has created in the painting Reading in a Bamboo Grove (1446, Tokyo National Museum) a realistic landscape with deep recession into space. Sesshu, unlike most artists of the period, was able to journey to China and study Chinese painting at its source. The Long Handscroll (Mori Collection, Yamaguchi) is one of Sesshu's most accomplished works, depicting a continuing landscape through the four seasons.

Architecture
Another major development of the period was the tea ceremony and the house in which it was held. The purpose of the ceremony is to spend time with friends who enjoy the arts, to cleanse the mind of the concerns of daily life, and to receive a bowl of tea served in a gracious and tasteful manner. The rustic style of the rural cottage was adopted for the tea house, emphasizing such natural materials as bark-covered logs and woven straw.

Kamakura Art

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In 1180 a civil war broke out between two military clans, the Taira and the Minamoto; five years later the Minamoto emerged victorious and established a de facto seat of government at the seaside village of Kamakura, where it remained until 1333. With the of power from the nobility to the warrior class, the arts had to satisfy a new audience: soldiers, men devoted to the skills of warfare; priests committed to making Buddhism available to illiterate commoners; and conservatives, the nobility and some members of the priesthood who regretted the declining power of the court. Thus, realism, a popularizing trend, and a classical revival characterize the art of the Kamakura period.

Sculpture
The Kei school of sculptors, particularly Unkei, created a new, more realistic style of sculpture. The two Nio guardian images (1203) in the Great South Gate of the Todai-ji in Nara illustrate Unkei's dynamic suprarealistic style. The images, about 8 m (about 26 ft) tall, were carved of multiple blocks in a period of about three months, a feat indicative of a developed studio system of artisans working under the direction of a master sculptor. Unkei's polychromed wood sculptures (1208, Kofuku-ji Temple, Nara) of two Indian sages, Muchaku and Seshin, the legendary founders of the Hosso sect, are among the most accomplished realistic works of the period; as rendered by Unkei, they are remarkably individualized and believable images.

Calligraphy and Painting
The Kegon Engi Emaki, the illustrated history of the founding of the Kegon sect, is an excellent example of the popularizing trend in Kamakura painting. The Kegon sect, one of the most important in the Nara period, fell on hard times during the ascendancy of the Pure Land sects. After the Gempei civil war (1180-85), Priest Myo-e of the Kozanji Temple sought to revive the sect and also to provide a refuge for women widowed by the war. The wives of samurai, even noblewomen, were discouraged from learning more than a syllabary system for transcribing sounds and ideas, and most were incapable of reading texts that employed Chinese ideographs. Thus, the Kegon Engi Emaki combines passages of text, written with a maximum of easily readable syllables, and illustrations that have the dialogue between characters written next to the speakers, a technique comparable to contemporary comic strips. The plot of the emaki, the lives of the two Korean priests who founded the Kegon sect, is swiftly paced and filled with fantastic feats such as a journey to the palace of the Ocean King, and a poignant love story. A work in a more conservative vein is the illustrated version of Murasaki Shikibu's diary. Emaki versions of her novel continued to be produced, but the nobility, attuned to the new interest in realism yet nostalgic for past days of wealth and power, revived and illustrated the diary in order to recapture the splendor of the author's times. One of the most beautiful passages illustrates the episode in which Murasaki Shikibu is playfully held prisoner in her room by two young courtiers, while, just outside, moonlight gleams on the mossy banks of a rivulet in the imperial garden.

Heian Art

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In 794 the capital of Japan was officially transferred to Heiankyo (present-day Kyoto), where it remained until 1868. The term Heian period refers to the years between 794 and 1185, the end of the Gempei civil war. The period is further divided into the early Heian and the late Heian, or Fujiwara, eras, the pivotal date being 894, the year imperial embassies to China were officially discontinued. The next period is named after the Fujiwara family, then the most powerful in the country, who ruled as regents for the emperor, becoming, in fact, civil dictators.

Early Heian Art
In reaction to the growing wealth and power of organized Buddhism in Nara, the priest Kukai (posthumous name Kobo Daishi, 774-835) journeyed to China to study Shingon, a more rigorous form of Buddhism, which he introduced into Japan in 806. At the core of Shingon worship are the mandala, diagrams of the spiritual universe; the Kongokai, a chart of the myriad worlds of Buddhism; and the Taizokai, a pictorial representation of the realms of the Buddhist universe.

The temples erected for this new sect were built in the mountains, far away from the court and the laity in the capital. The irregular topography of these sites forced Japanese architects to rethink the problems of temple construction, and in so doing to choose more indigenous elements of design. Cypress-bark roofs replaced those of ceramic tile, wood planks were used instead of earthen floors, and a separate worship area for the laity was added in front of the main sanctuary.

The temple that best reflects the spirit of early Heian Shingon temples is the Muro-ji (early 9th century), set deep in a stand of cypress trees on a mountain southeast of Nara. The wooden image of Shaka, the "historic" Buddha (early 9th century), enshrined in a secondary building at the Muro-ji, is typical of the early Heian sculpture, with its ponderous body, covered by thick drapery folds carved in the hompa-shiki (rolling-wave) style, and its austere, withdrawn facial expression.

Fujiwara Art
In the Fujiwara period, Pure Land Buddhism, which offered easy salvation through belief in Amida (the Buddha of the Western Paradise), became popular. Concurrently, the Kyoto nobility developed a society devoted to elegant aesthetic pursuits. So secure and beautiful was their world that they could not conceive of Paradise as being much different. The Amida hall, blending the secular with the religious, houses one or more Buddha images within a structure resembling the mansions of the nobility.

The Ho-o-do (Phoenix Hall, completed 1053) of the Byodoin, a temple in Uji to the southeast of Kyoto, is the exemplar of Fujiwara Amida halls. It consists of a main rectangular structure flanked by two L-shaped wing corridors and a tail corridor, set at the edge of a large artificial pond. Inside, a single golden image of Amida (circa 1053) is installed on a high platform. The Amida sculpture was executed by Jocho, who used a new canon of proportions and a new technique (yosegi), in which multiple pieces of wood are carved out like shells and joined from the inside. Applied to the walls of the hall are small relief carvings of celestials, the host believed to have accompanied Amida when he descended from the Western Paradise to gather the souls of believers at the moment of death and transport them in lotus blossoms to Paradise. Raigo (Descent of the Amida Buddha) paintings on the wooden doors of the Ho-o-do are an early example of Yamato-e, Japanese-style painting, because they contain representations of the scenery around Kyoto.

In the last century of the Heian period, the horizontal, illustrated narrative handscroll, the emaki, came to the fore. Dating from about 1130, the illustrated Tale of Genji represents one of the high points of Japanese painting. Written about the year 1000 by Murasaki Shikibu, a lady-in-waiting to the Empress Akiko, the novel deals with the life and loves of Prince Genji and the world of the Heian court after his death. The 12th-century artists of the emaki version devised A system of pictorial conventions that convey visually the emotional content of each scene. In the second half of the century, a different, more lively style of continuous narrative illustration became popular. The Ban Dainagon Ekotoba (late 12th century, Sakai Tadahiro Collection), a scroll that deals with an intrigue at court, emphasizes figures in active motion depicted in rapidly executed brush strokes and thin but vibrant colors.

Asuka and Nara Art

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During the Asuka and Nara periods, so named because the seat of Japanese government was located in the Asuka Valley from 552 to 710 and in the city of Nara until 784, the first significant invasion by Asian continental culture took place in Japan. The transmission of Buddhism provided the initial impetus for contacts between Korea, China, and Japan, and the Japanese recognized facets of Chinese culture that could profitably be incorporated into their own: a system for converting ideas and sounds into writing; historiography; complex theories of government, such as an effective bureaucracy; and, most important for the arts, advanced technology, new building techniques, more advanced methods of casting in bronze, and new techniques and mediums for painting.

Throughout the 7th and 8th centuries, however, the major focus in contacts between Japan and the Asian continent was the development of Buddhism. Not all scholars agree on the significant dates and the appropriate names to apply to various time periods between 552, the official date of the introduction of Buddhism into Japan, and 784, when the Japanese capital was transferred from Nara. The most common designations are the Suiko period, 552-645; the Hakuho period, 645-710; and the Tempyo period, 710-84.

The earliest Buddhist structures still extant in Japan, and the oldest wooden buildings in the Far East are found at the Horyu-ji to the southwest of Nara. First built in the early 7th century as the private temple of Crown Prince Shotokuconsists of 41 independent buildings; the most important ones, however, the main worship hall, or Kondo (Golden Hall), and Goju-no-to (Five-story Pagoda), stand in the center of an open area surrounded by a roofed cloister. The Kondo, in the style of Chinese worship halls, is a two-story structure of post-and-beam construction, capped by an irimoya, or hipped-gabled roof of ceramic tiles.

Inside the Kondo, on a large rectangular platform, are some of the most important sculptures of the period. The central image is a Shaka Trinity (623), the historical Buddha flanked by two bodhisattvas (Buddhist saints), a sculpture cast in bronze by the sculptor Tori Busshi (flourished early 7th century) in homage to the recently deceased Prince Shotoku. At the four corners of the platform are the Guardian Kings of the Four Directions, carved in wood about 650. Also housed at Horyu-ji is the Tamamushi Shrine, a wooden replica of a Kondo, which is set on a high wooden base that is decorated with figural paintings executed in a medium of mineral pigments mixed with lacquer.

Temple building in the 8th century was focused around the Todai-ji in Nara. Constructed as the headquarters for a network of temples in each of the provinces, the Todai-ji is the most ambitious religious complex erected in the early centuries of Buddhist worship in Japan. Appropriately, the 16.2-m (53-ft) Buddha (completed 752) enshrined in the main hall, or Daibutsuden, is a Rushana Buddha, the figure that represents the essence of Buddhahood, just as the Todai-ji represented the center for imperially sponsored Buddhism and its dissemination throughout Japan. Only a few fragments of the original statue survive, and the present hall and central Buddha are reconstructions from the Edo period.

Clustered around the Daibutsuden on a gently sloping hillside are a number of secondary halls: the Hokkedo (Lotus Sutra Hall), with its principal image, the Fukukenjaku Kannon (the most popular bodhisattva), crafted of dry lacquer (cloth dipped in lacquer and shaped over a wooden armature); the Kaidanin (Ordination Hall) with its magnificent clay statues of the Four Guardian Kings; and the storehouse, called the Shosoin. This last structure is of great importance as an art-historical cache, because in it are stored the utensils that were used in the temple's dedication ceremony in 752, the eye-opening ritual for the Rushana image, as well as government documents and many secular objects owned by the imperial family.

Japanese Art and Architecture

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Japanese Art and Architecture, works of art produced in Japan from the beginnings of human habitation there, sometime in the 10th millennium BC, to the present.

Historically, Japan has been subject to sudden invasions of new and alien ideas followed by long periods of minimal contact with the outside world. Over time the Japanese developed the ability to absorb, imitate, and finally assimilate those elements of foreign culture that complemented their aesthetic preferences. The earliest complex art in Japan was produced in the 7th and 8th centuries AD in connection with Buddhism. In the 9th century, as the Japanese began to turn away from China and develop indigenous forms of expression, the secular arts became increasingly important; until the late 15th century, both religious and secular arts flourished. After the Onin War (1467-1477) Japan entered a period of political, social, and economic disruption that lasted for nearly a century. In the state that emerged under the leadership of the Tokugawa clan, organized religion played a much less important role in people's lives, and the arts that survived were primarily secular.

Painting is the preferred artistic expression in Japan, practiced by amateur and professional alike. Until modern times, the Japanese wrote with a brush rather than a pen, and their familiarity with brush techniques has made them particularly sensitive to painterly values. They found sculpture a much less sympathetic medium for artistic expression; most Japanese sculpture is associated with religion, and the medium's use declined with the lessening importance of traditional Buddhism. Japanese ceramics are among the finest in the world and include the earliest known artifacts of their culture. In architecture, Japanese preferences for natural materials and an interaction of interior and exterior space are clearly expressed.

Japanese art is characterized by unique polarities. In the ceramics of the prehistoric periods, for example, exuberance was followed by disciplined and refined artistry. Another instance is provided by two 16th-century structures that are poles apart: Katsura Palace is an exercise in simplicity, with an emphasis on natural materials, rough and untrimmed, and an affinity for beauty achieved by accident; Toshogu Mausoleum is a rigidly symmetrical structure replete with brightly colored relief carvings covering every visible surface. Japanese art, valued not only for its simplicity but also for its colorful exuberance, has considerably influenced 19th-century Western painting and 20th-century Western architecture.

The Art of Japan

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Imagine that you are in a chamber, a Japanese chamber filled with hanivas. A long time ago Japanese Emperors and other rich and important officials were buried in a chamber made of stone that was buried in great clumps of earth. Hollow clay cylinders called hanivas were placed around the chamber to keep the bits of earth from going away. People have thought that in earlier times maids and servants were buried with their dead masters. The Japanese Emperors came from a long line of rulers which goes back about 2000 years. Jomon is the earliest culture researchers know in Japan. Joman is named for the lovely twisted rope decorations on clay pots made by people who lived 4000 years ago. The Jomon people also made small figurines. Ever since Japanese art was made a lot of people have been moved and copied the beautiful paintings. Interestingly people have been attracted to the beautiful paintings of Japan.

In the beginning of the Heian period from, 552 to 897, Buddhism was introduced to Japan from travelers, tourists, and visitors of China and Korea. Buddhism’s influence was only limited to close friends of the royal family, wealthy people and of course, the King and his family and subjects. Buddhism was only given to the noble class because of its strong beliefs.

Influence
During the ending of 400 BC new ideas and technology imported into Japan from China. Japanese people adopted the writing of the Chinese. Whenever the words from China imports into Japan the Japanese usually change a stroke or two. Prince Shotoku, the prince who ruled Japan from 593 until his death in 622, told and encouraged the Japanese to adopt Chinese ideas and technology. Shotoku wanted more power coming in from China to Japan because he decided that it would be better if there would be more power in the place he would rule in the future. He wanted and needed the power. The following year Emperor Kotoku and his subjects the Taika Reform, a small program which introduced Chinese ideas and technology.

Subject
When someone looks at Japanese art, the subject of the painting may not look realistic, but it does not need explanation.

A lot of paintings in Japan have beautiful back-rounds of mountains and valleys with streams and rivers going towards waterfalls while paintings have backgrounds that are just plain white.

When the Japanese paint or sculpt their god Buddha they usually show him or her sitting on or around lotus flowers. The background shows jewels and flowers dangling from every tree. Most sculptures are made of wood then painted into gold. But somehow the painting are never meant to be realistic. There is little detail and the painting may look dreamlike, someplace in heaven. Dots and lines formed most trees and mountains.

Art Forms
Japan has one of the most ancient traditions on Earth. The Japanese made many art forms. Drawing was one art form. Another art form was making boxes of all types such as stationary boxes, writings, brushes, and inkstone. Many people wrote poetry on beautifully drawn scrolls made of paper. Poets were very respected at courts that were owned by kings. The poets used calligraphy, or decorative writing, as an art form. The Japanese also made writing boxes, brushes, and inkstone. Japanese artists also made many sculptures. Most were made of wood, then painted in gold. The earliest culture, Jomon, made clay pots and figures and we can learn about their culture from these pieces.

Process and Materials
When the Japanese wanted to print a picture they would take a number of blocks depending how many colors there were going to be in the picture or paintings. On all the blocks there would be a different color. On the first block the carver would carve whatever was going to be that certain color. Then he would place a piece of paper and place it on the wet block. The carved image would come onto the piece of paper. He had to do that to every block, keeping the prints on the same piece of paper. When the Japanese made ink they would take lampblack, a black substance that comes from super hot pine needles. When pressure was put on it, it would make a long dark ink stick. Water was poured gently onto a rock and the black ink stick was rubbed against the stone to form ink. When people made ink they usually sat on a soft, puffy, beautifully designed pillow.

Japanese art has made people more attracted to art. The beautiful paintings and sculptures of this island has kept some museums full for a long time. Sometimes the Japanese adopt the art of other countries, states, and islands but the art of their own island is still beautiful.