Japanese art history and major movements

Japanese Art

The Form and Function of Japanese Art: Comparison

One of the most famous Japanese woodblock prints ever created is "The Great Wave at Kanagawa" ("The Great Wave at Kanagawa," the Metropolitan Museum of Art, 2007). Woodblock prints were a common form of Japanese two-dimensional art, involving the creation of a raised surface that was intended to either replicate a picture or create a new picture on the surface of a beautiful piece of paper. This particular print makes a contrast between the towering blue wave of a storm and the relatively diminutive mountain. Because of its sacredness, Mount Fuji, often called "the eternal mountain" was usually placed in the center of a woodblock composition, and was often quite large ("The Great Wave at Kanagawa, the Metropolitan Museum of Art, 2007). Instead, by showing how, even when confronted by a terrible wave, the mountain remains static, unlike the bobbing boats, the mountain's sacredness is affirmed in a unique, but still powerful fashion by the artist. Smallness is still strong, so long as the mountain remains rooted.

This fundamental principle affirms the philosophy of Japanese simplicity and strength as well, as embodied in the land's sacred mountain. The fact that the off-center mountain is envisioned during one of its most tragic hours, frozen in time also reaffirms its sacredness -- even when at its most threatened it cannot be destroyed. "In Japan, Mount Fuji (Fujiyama) is revered by Shintoists as sacred to the goddess Sengen-Sama, whose shrine is found at the summit. Named after the Buddhist fire goddess Fuchi, the mountain is believed to be the gateway to another world. The mountain was originally sacred to the Ainu, the aboriginal inhabitants of Japan" (Witcomb, 2007).

The woodblock is from the Edo period, considered the finest period of woodblock design. The wood-block technique, the "cutting of them and printing from them, which are indispensable in the making of Japanese color prints, are a very inconvenient and highly complicated medium with which to deal," yet the work must seem to be "done without much ado, usually leaving but little trace of the great difficulties which had to be surmounted in the making of the print. The prints so produced look as if they had been done with the utmost ease and the simplest technique" (Yoshida, 1939). In short the woodblocks must not look as if they took a great deal of care, just as the mountain does not look as if it is struggling. It remains impassive in the face of the difficulties posed by the waves, in contrast to the frantic activity of the boats. The seeming ease of the created woodblock thus pays tribute to the subject.

This apparent yet deceitful simplicity is also evident in the three-dimensional "Ewer for Use in Tea Ceremony," which functioned as a wine server for the meal that takes place after the tea ceremony. It is even more functional than the woodblock in use and purpose to some degree, as it was intended to serve food, not merely to replicate an artistic image. Its design reflected new technical innovations in kiln work, hence its bolder colors and patterns. But the meal it was designed for is of great symbolic significance, beyond food's own function of filling the belly of the diners. Like tea used during the tea ceremony, food and the vessels used to serve that food have a symbolic significance. The meal after the tea ceremony began as a "simple seasonal vegetarian meal served after the chanoyu or tea ceremony. Today, it is considered an art form that observes the harmony between food and nature, and takes the diner on an odyssey of flavors, textures and colors. A traditional kaiseki meal consists of a set sequence of courses based on preparation techniques. Pickled, raw, grilled and fried foods can all be included, in a certain order. Dishes focus on seasonal ingredients, and kaiseki chefs give zealous attention to presentation. Like the acts of a play, each dish is a component that strikes high and low chords yet harmonizes to create the whole" (Furiya, 2000). How the food appears within the serving ware is just as important as the tastes of the food itself, and the harmony of the flavors of the meal are reflected in the harmony and balance of colors on the vessel. Unlike the woodblock, the images upon the vessel are not dramatic, although the vessel is crafted in an innovative fashion, in terms of its use of kiln technique and introduction of unexpected colors. The striking nature of the color reflects its function as a wine vessel, one of the stronger flavors of the kaiseki meal. The heavier, brighter flavors of the wine are intended as a balance to the flavors of Japanese rice wine, known as saki.