Both religious and secular artistic traditions developed, but even the secular art was imbued with Buddhist and Confucianaesthetic principles, particularly the Zen concept that every aspect of the material world is part of an all encompassing whole. Over its long history, Japanese art absorbed many foreign artistic traditions and carried on intermittent exchanges with China and Korea. When Japan came into contact with the Western world during the 1. Japanese woodblock prints, paintings and ceramics had a considerable influence on European art, particularly on cubism and impressionism. Japanese aesthetic principles of simplicity and understatement influenced Western architecture and design during the 2. Japanese artists also absorbed Western techniques and materials and gained international audiences. Contemporary Japanese art is concerned with themes such as self identity and finding fulfillment in a world dominated by technology. Since the 1. 99. 0s, Japanese animation, known as anime, has become widely popular with young people in the West. Overview. Historically, Japan has been subject to sudden introductions of new and alien ideas followed by long periods of minimal contact with the outside world during which foreign elements were assimilated, adapted to Japanese aesthetic preferences, and sometimes developed into new forms. Like China and Korea, Japan developed both religious and secular artistic traditions. The earliest complex art in Japan was produced in the seventh and eighth centuries C. E. in connection with Buddhism. In the ninth century, as the Japanese began to turn away from China, and indigenous forms of expression were developed, the secular arts became increasingly important. A social and intellectual elite refined ink painting, calligraphy, poetry, literature and music as forms of self expression and entertainment. Until the late fifteenth century, both religious and secular arts flourished. After the nin War 1. 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 peoples lives, and the arts that became primarily secular. The Japanese, in this period, found sculpture a much less sympathetic medium for artistic expression most Japanese sculpture is associated with religion, and the mediums use declined with the lessening importance of traditional Buddhism. During the sixteenth century, the emergence of a wealthy merchant class and urban areas centered around industries such as the production of textiles created a demand for popular entertainment and for mass produced art such as wood block prints and picture books. In the Edo period 1. Painting is the preferred artistic expression in Japan, practiced by amateurs and professionals alike. Ink and water color painting were an outgrowth of calligraphy until modern times, the Japanese wrote with a brush rather than a pen. Oil painting was introduced when Japan came into contact with the West during the sixteenth century, along with Western aesthetic concepts such as the use of perspective in landscapes. Contemporary Japanese painters work in all genres including traditional ink and water color painting, classical oil painting, and modern media. Japanese ceramics are among the finest in the world and include the earliest known artifacts of Japanese culture. In architecture, Japanese preferences for natural materials and an interaction of interior and exterior space are clearly expressed. Japans contributions to contemporary art, fashion and architecture, are creations of a modern, global, and multi cultural or acultural bent. History of Japanese art. Jmon art. The first settlers of Japan, the Jmon people c 1. B. C. E., named for the cord markings that decorated the surfaces of their clay vessels, were nomadichunter gatherers who later practiced organized farming and built cities with substantial populations. They built simple houses of wood and thatch set into shallow earthen pits to provide warmth from the soil, and crafted lavishly decorated pottery storage vessels, clay figurines called dogu, and crystal jewels. Statuette with Snow Glasses, Jmon Era. Yayoi art. The Yayoi people, named for the district in Tokyo where remnants of their settlements first were found, arrived in Japan about 3. B. C. E., bringing their knowledge of wetland rice cultivation, the manufacture of copper weapons and bronze bells dtaku, and wheel thrown, kiln fired ceramics. Dtaku, smelted from relatively thin bronze and richly decorated, were probably used only for rituals. The oldest dtaku found date from the second or third century B. C. E. corresponding to the end of the Yayoi era. Historians believe that dtaku were used to pray for good harvests because they are decorated with animals such as the dragonfly, praying mantis and spider, that are natural enemies of insect pests that attack paddy fields. A Yayoi period dtaku, third century. A Yayoi jar, first third century, excavated in Kugahara, Ota, Tokyo, Tokyo National Museum. Kofun art. The third stage in Japanese prehistory, the Kofun, or Tumulus, period ca. C. E., named for the tombs 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. Haniwa soldier. Haniwa horse statuette, complete with saddle and stirrups, sixth century. Asuka and Nara art. Special Masters Program Medical School Loyola. During the Asuka and Nara periods, so named because the seat of Japanese government was located in the Asuka Valley from 5. Nara until 7. 84, the first significant introduction of Asian continental culture took place in Japan. The transmission of Buddhism provided the initial impetus for contacts between China, Korea and Japan. The earliest Japanese sculptures of the Buddha are dated to the sixth and seventh century. In 5. 38, the ruling monarch of Baekche, King Sng, sent an official diplomatic mission to formally introduce Buddhism to the Japanese court, and presented Buddhist images and sutras to the emperor. During the second half of the sixth century, Korean priests played an important role in the propagation of Buddhism, and the influence of Korean sculptors can be traced in Buddhist works of the Asuka period 5.
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