Japanese art and Bunjinga: Tani Buncho, Power of China and his Eclectic Nature Lee Jay Walker Modern Tokyo Times The artist Tani Buncho felt the rich pull of Chinese culture despite the historical reality of Japan being mainly cut off from the outside world during his lifetime. Buncho was born in 1763 and died in [...]
Japanese Art and Ogata Korin: Serenity, the Gods of Thunder and Sakai Hoitsu Lee Jay Walker Modern Tokyo Times Ogata Korin was a painter of art and he was born in 1658 and died in 1716. Korin had a lucky upbringing because his father was a successful merchant and wealthy. Also, his father had a [...]
Japanese Shunga Prints – Art or Pornography? By toshidama It is the fashion, especially among connoisseurs, to make distinctions between erotica and pornography. However, it seems to me disingenuous to describe some images as pornographic and others as erotic when the distinction is only contextual or at least subjective. In the field of Japanese art, shunga is the [...]
Japanese and British Art and the influence of France: L.S. Lowry and Oka Shikanosuke Lee Jay Walker Modern Tokyo Times At first the artists L.S. Lowry (1887-1976) and Oka Shikanosuke (1898-1978) appear to be separated by very different cultural and social backgrounds. Similarly, from the industrial point of view, it is clear that Lowry resided [...]
Bonsai Trees in Japanese Prints – Small is Beautiful By toshidama I suppose that if you were to ask most people about traditional Japanese culture, they would talk about geishas and samurai, sushi, kimonos and bonsai trees. It’s likely though that few people would know much about the bonsai tree and probably would not have seen one. [...]
Japanese Art and Culture: Impact of Oda Nobunaga and Rich Art of Kano Eitoku Lee Jay Walker Modern Tokyo Times In modern Japan the importance of Oda Nobunaga (1534-1582) and his legacy remains extremely strong even today. After all, he laid the foundation stone for the future centralized Japan despite certain limitations during the Tokugawa [...]
Japanese Art in the Edo Period: Ogata Korin and Growing Legacy Lee Jay Walker Modern Tokyo Times The artist Ogata Korin (1658-1716) was nearly “the forgotten man” of Japanese art until individuals like Sakai Hoitsu (1761-1828) brought his art back to life. This is rather surprising given the nature of his individualism and the quality [...]
Japanese Folklore and Art: Kyosai and the World of the Tengu Lee Jay Walker Modern Tokyo Times The Japanese artist Kawanabe Kyosai is extremely fascinating because of his individualistic spirit and this is witnessed in his art. Kyosai, just like the mysterious Tengu, belonged to two worlds and this applies to the old Edo period [...]
Gajo – Traditional Bindings for Japanese Woodblock Prints By toshidama There’s a fantastic feeling that you get when you hold a perfect ukiyo print in your hands, one that has escaped the ravages of time. Edo (Tokyo) has been plagued by fires which were so frequent in the past that they were referred to as the [...]
Women and the Floating World By toshidama I guess it is to be both anticipated and regretted that the women of Japan who were once the great writers and poets and priestesses, not to say robbers and warriors of their culture, should have been reduced by the middle of the nineteenth century to the status of ornament [...]
Japanese Art and Culture: Isoda Koryusai and Unique Upbringing Lee Jay Walker Modern Tokyo Times The ukiyo-e art of Isoda Koryusai highlights the richness of Japanese culture and his unique style and background is a wonder to behold. Indeed, individuals like Koryusai and Nishikawa Sukenobu bless the ukiyo-e art world because of their different perspectives. [...]
Japanese Gifts – Toshidama Explained By toshidama People sometimes say to us: “what is a Toshidama?” The characteristic round seal seen on many nineteenth century Japanese prints is called a Toshidama Seal. It was used at some point by most artists of the Utagawa School. At first it looks like the silhouette of a diamond ring with four [...]
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