There
are many historical movements in Japan's fine arts. Up until the
sixth century, pottery was found that displayed a restrained and sophisticated
aesthetic characterized by refined shpaes and light, geometric
decorations. Bell shaped bronzes were also found, know as dotaku,
which were probably derived from Korean musical instrument are thought to have
functioned as symbols of authority.
From
710-794, Japanese culture was modeled after the Tang Dynasty in China, but by
1185 the direct influence of continental culture shifted to a Japanese-style
aristocratic culture that flowered and matured.
Esoteric
Buddhism dominated art during the ninth century, it's complex cosmology
was depicted in mandalas. Later esoteric Buddhism gave way to the
Jodo (Pure Land) sect. This period also saw major developments in yama-to-se,
or secular Japanese-style painting, most notably emaki
(illustrated scrolls), which matched pictures to the unfolding of a
story in poetry or prose. During the next period emaki
further developed and flourished as pictorial narratives of wars and
illustrated biographies.
In
Edo, ukiyo-e (woodblock prints of everyday life) came into vogue
among the common people in the mid-eighteenth century. Thus
followed the golden age of of ukiyo-e, characterized by colorful
prints of actors and beautiful women.
During this time Katsushika
Hokusai and Ando Hiroshige adopted the Western method of drawing in
perspective introduced by such painters as Shiba Kokan through Nagasaki,
the only port open to foreign trade. Their landscapes opened a new
phase in ukiyo-e.
Full
scale contact with Western art following the Meiji Restoration created
in Japan a new tradition of Western-style painting (yoga), mainly
in oils, in addition to influencing the time-honored Japanese style of
painting (Nihonga). Contemporary Japanese art has been
strongly influenced by postwar American pop art and other art forms.
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Information
provided by the Japanese Embassy
