Crafting Beauty in Modern Japan at The British Museum

Written by Pam Held Sunday, 02 October 2011 20:36

 

LONDON - Japan has a long tradition of making, using and appreciating beautiful craft objects and this tradition is closely integrated into people’s lives. A respect for the beauty of these objects and the materials and techniques used to create them is embedded in Japanese social attitudes and culture. This exhibition celebrates the best of the last fifty years of the annual ‘Japan Traditional Art Crafts Exhibition’, with each of the 112 works created by a different leading artist, past and present. On exhibition through 21 October, 2007.

Many of the artists have been designated by the Japanese government as ‘Living National Treasures’, holders of important craft skills. Their works represent some of the best art crafts, both traditional and ultra-modern, to have been produced in Japan during the last half century, since the annual exhibition began in 1954. Most of the pieces are loaned by the The National Museum of Modern Art, Tokyo, The National Museum of Modern Art, Kyoto and Agency for Cultural Affairs, Japan.

The British Museum exhibition will be divided into six sections each featuring a different medium: ceramic; textile; lacquer; metal; wood and bamboo and other crafts (cut gold-leaf, glass, dolls). In addition, a small display of pre-modern craft objects from the British Museum’s own collections will provide context for the contemporary pieces.

Japan has one of the oldest ceramic cultures in the world yet identified, dating back to 14,500 BC. Contemporary ceramic expression in Japan is deeply interwoven with local traditions and varies from ‘Genesis’, a highly refined porcelain bowl with vivid, glass-like coloured glazes by Tokuda Yasokichi III to a rugged stoneware rectangular plate in black Bizen style made by Isezaki Jun.

Textile art is perhaps the most compelling of all Japanese art forms and historically has always been at the cutting edge of design - literally, the works are wearable art. The kimono ‘Melody’ by Matsubara Yoshichi with its pulsating design of fans scattered all over the wearer’s body, is a very modern adaptation of the traditional technique of indigo stencil dyeing. Textiles are the major area in contemporary Japanese craft expression where women artists are gaining a high profile, as seen in the woven silk kimono ‘Path Leading into the Woods’ by Murakami Ry?ko.

Lacquer work is the most time consuming and technically difficult of all the arts in East Asia, and is perhaps the most prized of all the craft media. Recently examples of lacquer wares have been discovered in Japan that may date to as early as 7,000 BC. Kuroda Tatsuaki’s compelling ornamental red lacquer box with flowing design is a perfect example of the miraculous visual and textural properties of lacquer ware.

There is currently a growth in new styles of expression in metalwork and this represents some of the most daring decorative arts in Japan today. Examples include Ōsumi Yukie’s vase ‘Sea Breeze’ in hammered silver and Nakagawa Mamoru’s vase with inlaid stripe design in copper and silver alloy.

 Wood and bamboo are venerated materials in Japan, closely integrated into daily life. Bamboo in particular has recently gained cult status and is collected widely outside Japan. Katsushiro S?h?’s basket ‘Shallow Stream’ in split bamboo technique is an exquisite example of a work which is both functional and beautiful. Wood has always been a material of choice for sculptors in Japan and in many cases is worked laboriously by artists polishing, burning or inlaying to produce supreme examples of their craft. Nakagawa Kiyotsugu has used ancient sacred cedar wood in a complex mosaic inlay technique to decorate his square box.

The exhibition concludes with glass making and dolls. Dolls in Japan have souls and are celebrated each year with their own festival. ‘Eguchi’ by Hayashi Komao brings a famous courtesan from medieval history vividly to life. Glass has an ancient but largely unacknowledged history in Japan. New types of Japanese glass design are at the forefront of innovation, but this is not yet recognised by the Living National Treasure system. Intriguing works such as Ishida Wataru’s covered container with pate de verre, ‘White Age (Age 99)’ suggest that it surely will be in the future.

Visit the British Museum www.thebritishmuseum.ac.uk

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