Japan in Jacksonville ~ The Cummer Collection of Japanese Prints

Written by George Montalvo Saturday, 20 November 2010 16:50

Jacksonville, FL – The Cummer Museum of Art & Gardens presents a collection of 19^th century Japanese woodblock prints that showcases many aspects of this uniquely expressive art form.  Japan in Jacksonville: The Cummer Collection of Japanese Prints, on view from September 14 through November 12, highlights the museum’s Asian art collection, and provides a wide-ranging view of the styles and themes encompassed by this vibrant genre.  All of the prints featured in this exhibition, whether landscape, warrior, actor, or courtesan-themed, are considered to be images of this pleasure-filled world.  Each in its own way illuminates an understanding of 19^th century Japanese culture.

“The Cummer has an extensive collection of Asian art and this exhibition is a way for us to enlighten our visitors to other cultures and art forms,” said Museum Director Maarten van de Guchte.  “This exhibition allows us to provide programs and experiences that deepen our visitors understanding of this special collection.”

While there are varied aspects of this uniquely expressive art form, in this exhibition all of the prints are called ukiyo-e, meaning images that represent the pursuit of pleasure or the enjoyment of the earthly world.  In 19^th century Edo, now Tokyo, the ukiyo, or floating world, was a designated entertainment or pleasure district within the city.  Here, samurai and newly wealthy urban classes mixed, to enjoy leisure pursuits like kabuki theatre and geisha companionship.  Ukiyo-e artists capitalized on the popularity of the ukiyo district by producing affordable prints of geisha, courtesans, and actors.  At the time of their production, these prints cost about as much as a haircut or inexpensive meal, and about half as much as a theatre ticket.  Patrons could easily collect these works of art to commemorate their participation in these pleasures, but also to unify and solidify the idea of the “floating world.”

 Japan in Jacksonville: The Cummer Collection of Japanese Prints opens on Wednesday, September 13 with a member’s preview featuring Taiko drumming, demonstrating artists in Sumiye painting and woodblock printmaking, music of Japan and authentic cuisine sponsored by KoKo’s Japanese Restaurant.  Special programs and events for visitors throughout the exhibition include an Ikebana (the art of Japanese flower arranging) workshop, Sumiye ink painting workshop, woodblock printmaking class, Haiku Slam, Taiko drumming, Family Day, Especially for Seniors Gallery Talks and docent led tours (see attached program and event schedule).

Background Information

In the early decades of the 19^th century, tourism in and around Edo boomed, and printmakers became merchants as they produced scenic views for the tourist market.  Katsushika Hokusai (1760 - 1849), one of Japan’s most famous printmakers, produced the series Thirty-six Views of Mount Fuji, a landmark more than 100 miles away from the city center but sacred to its identity. 

Utagawa Hiroshige (1797 - 1858) followed with his series One Hundred Famous Views of Edo and Famous Places in the Sixty-Odd Provinces.  Many of these works, created when Japan opened to foreign trade, provided Westerners with their first visual impressions of that nation.  In the One Hundred Famous Views of Edo series, Hiroshige shows the city’s beautiful scenery as well as its history, customs and legends.

Also, featured in the exhibition are images from Tsukioka Yoshitoshi’s (1839 – 1892) series 100 Aspects of the Moon, published between 1885 and 1892, and Beauty and Valor in the Novel Suikoden, 1867, which contain references to Japanese and Chinese history, literature, and theatre, as well as contemporary culture in the city of Edo.

Woodblock prints had an influence on western art even though the prints were intended for the people of Japan.  Japanese prints strongly influenced the Impressionists.  These artists admired the bold designs, compositional arrangements and shifting perspective found in Japanese woodblock prints, and infused their own work with these elements.

Visit The Cummer Museum of Art & Gardens at : www.cummer.org/