Quiz Four / Final Exam

Choose any three of the following questions -- at least one of which must be on Islamic art and at least one of which must be on Japanese art-- plus the Final Question, and answer each. Use your own words; if you use any outside sources (even those linked to the website) please use MLA format to cite those sources. As always I will be reading your answers for accuracy, clarity, and depth (of  understanding). Answers are due at the final class meeting: 10.15 on Wednesday, May 2.

1. Spirited Away: Explain the concept of aware (beauty and sadness) using examples from Miyazaki's film

2. Zen Art: explain the purposes and meaning of one specific work of art -- either Ryoan-ji, the haboku painting of Toyo Sesshu, or ukiyo-e woodblock prints -- how the work both represents the world & calls attention to its falseness

3. wabi-sabi: explain how this concept can be seen in at least two aspects of the tea ceremony or the objects associated with it

4. Hokusai's "Great Wave:" explain the meaning(s) of this image

5. Islamic Decorative Art: describe the three principal types of decoration used in Islamic art, and what they all have in common.

6. Mosque: describe the essential and most common features of a mosque and the purpose of each.

7. Taj Mahal: who made it, and what is it for? Describe at least three ways of looking at the Taj.

8. Final Question: Our college's General Education program requires all students to complete work in each of ten different areas of competency. Below are descriptions (from the catalog) of two of them. Choose one of these competencies -- either Cultural Literacy or Diversity and Social Consciousness -- and explain how your work in this class fits that description. Use at least two specific examples from the course material to support your answer.

Cultural Literacy: To develop the skills and cultural knowledge base necessary for effective membership in the larger community; to read and comprehend artifacts and texts in their historical and cultural contexts.

Diversity and Social Consciousness: To demonstrate an awareness of the diversity that exists among all human groups, and to develop the necessary skills to understand diverse cultures and traditions.

Hokusai's "The Great Wave"

"Under The Great Wave at Kanagawa"

by Hokusai

from the series "Thirty-Six Views of Mt. Fuji"

Freer / Sackler (Smithsonian) 

Metropolitan Museum of Art

Museum of Fine Arts, Boston

British Museum

The BBC's "History of the World in 100 Objects" (no. 93)

"Hokusai: A Man Before His Time" (Freer / Sackler)

"Hokusai: Mad About Painting" (Freer / Sackler)

Wikimedia Gallery of works by Hokusai

ukiyo-e

ukiyo-e resources:

Wikipedia article

"Art of the Edo Period" (toah)

"Woodblock Prints in the Ukiyo-E Style" (toah)

"Art of the Pleasure Quarters and the Ukiyo-E Style" (toah)

The Production of Japanese Woodblock Prints

"The Floating World of Ukiyo-E" (Library of Congress)

Lots of Good Examples (mia)

"The Floating World" (ashmo)

wabi-sabi

Shino ware water jar "Kogan"

wabi-sabi

wabi-sabi Aesthetics

"In Search of Wabi-Sabi"

from about 6.00 on = tea ceremony

30 Translations of (and notes on) Basho's most famous haiku 

Japanese Tea Ceremony 1

You can spend your whole life learning about the Japanese tea ceremony. Here's a start.

• Chaihatsu page at the Minnesota Institute of the Arts
• Tea Ceremony page at Wikipedia
• Chaihatsu page at Wikipedia
• A commercial page that has lots of good information on the Tea Ceremony
• an excellent explanation of "Japanese Aesthetics, wabi-sabi, and the Tea Ceremony" 

Japanese Zen Gardens

Although we could look at many web pages, we can do the job very well with just this one: The Japanese Garden — created by Clifton C. Olds, Professor of Art History Emeritus at Bowdoin College in Maine.  

I encourage you to look through the whole thing, but in class we will focus on two gardens:

Daisen-in and Ryoan-ji. The Zen Garden at Ryoan-ji (shown above) is probably the most recognizable and important works of art ever made. 

For Ryoan-ji you can also consult the official site, the Wikipedia article, and this site from Columbia University. 

Japanese painting: Haboku "Broken Ink" style

Zen Buddhism had an important influence on Japanese painting during the Muromachi period.  Zen is a form of Mahayaana Buddhism which developed in China and later flourished in Japan. It is NOT a matter of chilling out and being passive; it does involve spontaneity, but only in contrast to great discipline. 

"Zen Buddhism’s emphasis on simplicity and the importance of the natural world generated a distinctive aesthetic, which is expressed by the terms wabi and sabi. These two amorphous concepts are used to express a sense of rusticity, melancholy, loneliness, naturalness, and age, so that a misshapen, worn peasant’s jar is considered more beautiful than a pristine, carefully crafted dish. While the latter pleases the senses, the former stimulates the mind and emotions to contemplate the essence of reality. This artistic sensibility has had an enormous impact on Japanese culture up to modern times."

Zen had a huge influence on Japanese art, as we'll see. It meshes very well with the Shinto aesthetic. But the best place to begin is with paintings like the one above by Sesshu Toyo, a Buddhist monk, using the Haboku (or "Broken Ink") style.

Japanese Painting: yamato-e

yamato-e ("Japanese-Style") painting

Yamato-e style is the authentic national style of Japanese illustrative art, often used for painted scrolls, but also in other forms and media. In looking at yamato-e  from Japan, we’ll be looking at illustrations of The Tale of Genji. Genji monogatari is one of the most important works of Japanese literature -- and the first modern novel in any language. It's still very popular today.

• a complete edition of Genji with woodcut illustrations by Harumasa Yamamoto
• "1000 Years of Genji" (Japan Times) 
• a 1987 anime of Genji (14 eps MLYT)

Ameratsu Shrine at Ise (Ise-Jingu)

Websites and Movie Links

• Ise Jingu official site (in English though) 
• "anime" introduction for children (^_^) -- slow but good information
• Wikipedia article on the Ise Grand Shrine
• useful page by Chris Witcombe of Sweetbriar College

(I know the guy is pretty odd but the info is good)

Study Questions for "Spirited Away"

1. look for examples (people, places, images) of the following categories and consider the ways in which they relate to each other (conflict, contrast, alignment):
• old / traditional Japan
• new / Westernized Japan
• the natural world of Japan
2. How does the film portray power? What (people, places, images) in the world of the film seem most powerful? What kinds of power are there?
3. How does the film portray beauty? What (people, places, images) in the world of the film seem most beautiful? What kinds of beauty are there?
4. How does the film portray sadness? Is sadness a flaw or a strength?
5. Why is the film's main character a young girl? Why does she have more than one name? 

Enjoy the film! Enjoy learning from the film.

Buddhist Religious Architecture: Pagodas

Wikipedia article: Pagoda LINK

Fogon Si Pagoda, Yingzian, China

The Song Dynasty in China (Columbia University) LINK

Wikipedia article: Architecture of the Song Dynasty: LINK

Wikipedia article: Pagoda of Fogong Temple LINK

Wikipedia article: Ancient Chinese Wooden Architecture LINK

"The Eight-Sided Pagoda of Foguang Si at Yingxian" by Kate Erickson LINK

Some Photos at Flickr HERE and HERE

Wikimedia page: Pagodas in China LINK

Horyu-Ji Pagoda, Japan

Horyu-Ji at Wikipedia LINK

Horyu-Ji at Great Buildings Online LINK

Horyu-Ji at Asian Historical Architecture LINK

Japan: Contemporary Art

Photo of Takashi Murakami by ~FacelessRebel at deviantart

Naturally there are many, many contemporary Japanese artists worthy of attention.  Here are some links to a few of them.

To start with, there was a famous exhibition at the Asia Society in NYC called "Little Boy" in 2005; a 2007 exhibition at the same place called "Making a Home" was also very interesting.

Probably the most famous contemporary Japanese artist is Takashi Murakami. There's a Wikipedia entry with some useful links.  His page at Kaikai Kiki, the art company he founded is also useful, as is this page from an exhibition at the Museum of Contemporary Art (MOCA) in Los Angeles.  (There are tons of YouTube videos featuring Murakami as well.  Here's one where he's interviewed by fashion designer Mark Jacobs about, among other things, Murakami's collaboration with Louis Vuitton.)  And he shows in galleries and other museums too.

Besides Murakami, Kaikai Kiki handles a number of artists
Yamamoto Gendai is a Japanese gallery handling many contemporary artists.

Other artists to look at:

• Tsuchiya Kimio
• Yoshitomo Nara
• Kohei Nawa  
• Motohiko Odani
• Chiharu Shiota
• Markio Mori
• Chinatsu Ban
• Yayoi Kusuma 

Japan: Hokusai's "The Great Wave"

Article on “The Great Wave” at the Met’s “Timeline of Art History”

Hokusai article at Wikipedia

Article on the Thirty-Six Views of Mount Fuji at Wikipedia

More of Hokusai’s work at Wikimedia Commons

"Hokusai:  Mad About Painting" at the Freer/Sackler (Smithsonian) 

Ukiyo-e article at Wikipedia 

Hiroshige.  ”Two Men on a Sloping Bridge in the Rain.”

“Art of the Edo Period” at the Timeline of Art History (Met)

“Woodblock Prints in the Ukiyo-e Style” (Met)
”Art of the Pleasure Quarters at the Ukiyo-e Style” (Met)

The Production of Japanese Woodcut Blocks (J. Noel Chiappa) explains and shows the whole process 

Lots of other examples by lots of artists:

Japanese prints at the Museum of Fine Arts, Boston
Japanese prints at the Minneapolis Institute of Art 

(On Wednesday, we’ll proceed to Hokusai and “The Great Wave”)

You could spend your whole life attempting to understand the Tea Ceremony.  Here's a start.  

Chashitsu (at the Minneapolis Institute of Arts)
Wikipedia article on the Japanese Tea ceremony 
Wikipedia article on the Chashitsu
Website on everything related to the Tea Ceremony 

“Japanese Aesthetics, Wabi-Sabi, and the Tea Ceremony” (.pdf)

Although we could look at many web pages, we can do the job very well with just this one: The Japanese Garden — created by Clifton C. Olds, Professor of Art History Emeritus at Bowdoin College in Maine.  

I encourage you to look through the whole thing, but in class we will focus on two gardens:

Daisen-in

and 

Ryoan-ji 

(OK, I lied, for Ryoan-ji also see this and this and this.)

Japan: Zen Painting

Metropolitan Museum of Art article on Muromachi Period

Sesshu Toyo example & article at the British Museum 

Sesshu Toyo entry at Wikipedia 

More Sesshu 

Entry on Zen at Wikipedia

Metropolitan Museum of Art article on Zen  

"Zen Buddhism’s emphasis on simplicity and the importance of the natural world generated a distinctive aesthetic, which is expressed by the terms wabi and sabi. These two amorphous concepts are used to express a sense of rusticity, melancholy, loneliness, naturalness, and age, so that a misshapen, worn peasant’s jar is considered more beautiful than a pristine, carefully crafted dish. While the latter pleases the senses, the former stimulates the mind and emotions to contemplate the essence of reality. This artistic sensibility has had an enormous impact on Japanese culture up to modern times."

yamato-e

• yamato-e (Timeline of Art History) LINK
• yamato-e (British Museum) LINK
• Japanese narrative scrolls (University of Pittsburgh) LINK

One of the most important works of Japanese literature is The Tale of Genji.  In looking at yamato-e painting from Japan, we’ll be looking at illustrations of this novel.  So you can read more about it, here are some links.  

A complete edition with woodcut illustrations by Harumasa Yamamoto is HERE.

A Japan Times article:  1,000 Years of Genji

Of course Wikipedia has an entry with lots of helpful links.

And there is a 1987 anime of Genji monogatari on YouTube.  (Part 1 of 14 videos linked below)  

Ameratsu Shrine at Ise (Ise-Jingu)

Official Website LINK

"The basis of Shinto faith is the consciousness that nature and human beings are united firmly through the kami. This consciousness is expressed in the ritual forms of worshiping the kami. 

Among the many Shinto sanctuaries in Japan, Ise Jingu is the supreme. For the establishment of the state, the key unifying factors were the Imperial Household, for society, and the production of rice for its livelihood. Ise Jingu links the two factors and offers spiritual support for the Japanese in times of confusion. The kami of Ise Jingu is Amaterasu Omikmai, the supreme deity, who is not only the ancestor of the Imperial Family, but also the kami that gave rice to the people, as described in Japanese mythology."

Official Site “anime” (^_^) LINK (be patient)

Of course Wikipedia has a PAGE too
Fodors Guidebook page

Another good site by Chris Witcombe of Sweetbriar College.

promo video for upcoming 2013 sengu ceremony

Schedule: Weeks 11 to 15

Week 11: Japan I
m: the Ameratsu Shrine at Ise : Shinto
w: Heian period painting : yamato-e
f: Muromachi period painting & Zen painting
Week 12: Japan II
m: Zen-style gardens
w: chaihatsu (tea house) * EXERCISE 3 DUE *
f: wabi-sabi
Week 13: Japan III
m: Japanese woodcuts : ukiyo-e
w: ukiyo-e : Hokusai's "Great Wave"
f: contemporary Japanese art -- one or two examples
Week 14: Aboriginal Australian art
m: Aboriginal Australian art : petroglyphs
w: Aboriginal Australian paintings
f: Aboriginal Australian paintings
Week 15:
m: course review
w: EXAM (10.15-12.15)