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Hokusai – Japan’s most internationally-renowned artist, a master of Ukiyo-e art
His style of art and subject evolved as many times as he changed his name, but Hokusai’s talent as an artist remained constant and his influential role in later art movements such as Art Nouveau and Impressionism remains eternal.
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The Art of Utamaro
The text below is the excerpt from the book Utamaro (ASIN: B016XN18LC), written by Edmond de Goncourt, published by Parkstone International. To leaf through albums of Japanese prints is truly to experience a new awakening, during which one is struck in particular by the splendour of Utamaro. His sumptuous plates seize the imagination through his love of women, whom he wraps so voluptuously in grand Japanese fabrics, in folds, contours, cascades and colours so finely chosen that the heart grows faint looking at them, imagining what exquisite thrills they represented for the artist. For women’s clothing reveals a nation’s concept of love, and this love itself is but a form of lofty thought crystallised…
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Looking Beyond the Portrait
Set sometime in the late 19th century, a woman in a colorful kimono gazes contemplatively out into the hazy distance. She stands with hips jutted out and hair pulled back into a loose bun, and I wonder, who is she? Why is she alone? Like most of the painted bijin-ga—a term that generalizes beautiful women—of the Miji period, we will likely never know much more about her or other East Asian women beyond their painted depictions. The truth behind her stoic gaze will go unanswered, which is ironic and almost sad, since these women were revered by poets, writers, and artists alike over several centuries. They served as the muse…
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Mary Griggs Burke: Bringing Japanese Art to the Forefront
Mary Griggs Burke is not a name many have heard of but when she passed away in 2012, there were many mournful faces, specifically from those in the art world. Recognised as having the largest private collection of Japanese art outside of Japan, Griggs Burke had quite an impact on the emergence of Asian art in the United States. “The beauty of the Japanese aesthetic first struck me when I saw my mother’s kimono, a padded winter garment of black silk displaying at the knee a bold design of twisted pine branches covered with snow.[…] It was then, I believe, that a future collector of Japanese art was born.” Due…
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Shunga: Traditional Japanese Pornography
Manga? Yes Anime? Yes Shunga? Ummmm… That’s one that not many people have heard of. Literally translated as “picture of spring”, it is an age-old Japanese erotic art form usually printed on woodblock. A sub genre of ukiyo-e, Shunga (春画) reached its pinnacle in the Edo Period from 1603 to 1867 and survived repeated government attempts at suppression. However, before they were shunned their widespread use and availability was commonplace and endeavoured to depict everyday life in the Edo. Carried around as lucky charms by Samurais and merchants as well as being offered to newly-wed’s as a type of sex education; shunga was accepted and used by everyone, regardless of…
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