by kristan hauge | May 24, 2016 | exhibition review
Since the sets of scroll paintings were separated in the late 19th century, Jakuchu’s Sakyamuni Triptych and the Colourful Realm of Living Beings, had only been viewable together on two occasions: in 2007 at Shokokuji’s Jotenkaku Museum, and in 2012 at the National...
by kristan hauge | Apr 21, 2016 | exhibition review
The Art of Zen: From Mind to Form. Kyoto National Museum 2016, April 12 through May 22. This is an exceptional exhibition of Japanese paintings, both secular and non-secular, held in the repositories of Japan’s most important Zen temples. Of over 300 items...
by kristan hauge | Mar 14, 2016 | exhibition review
From March 1-13, 2016, the Miho museum afforded the public a rare opportunity to view two famous and closely-related pairs of Japanese folding screens. Highlights of the exhibition consisted of Ito Jakuchu’s ‘mosaic screens’, two pairs of six-panel screens from...
by kristan hauge | Mar 8, 2016 | exhibition review
Jissoin temple is a well-known ‘monzeki’ temple located in the north of Kyoto city. The word monzeki denotes temples with strong connections to the imperial family or families of high rank within the samurai feudal system. The first two rooms of the Jissoin exhibition...
by kristan hauge | Mar 1, 2016 | exhibition review
Toward the end of 2015 the first ever exhibition in Japan of Japanese erotic art or ‘Shunga’ (literally ‘spring pictures’) was held in Tokyo’s Eisei Bunko Museum. Incredibly, during its three month run the show drew in over 200,000 visitors. From February 6th the...