Japanese Woodblock Prints From the Second Half of the 19th to Early 20th Century in the Context of the Influence to the Western Art

There are known periods of development of Japanese traditional ukiyo-e engraving: from its origin in the 17th century and its flourishing in the 18th — first half of the 19th century to the “decline” in the second half of the 19th century. The period of Meiji Restoration (1868–1912) was marked by the opening of Japan after more than two hundred years of self-isolation, acquaintance with Western achievements in the field of industry, science and art. The article discusses the search of combination of Western and national traditions by Japanese artists. Familiarity with the new artistic language and intention to introduce it into the space of traditional ukiyo-e engraving became the basis for the masters of this period. Changes in the field of traditional genres are noted: instead of images of actors (yakusha-e), beauties (bijinga) and landscapes (fukeiga), there were appeared images of foreigners with their manners (yokohama-e), Japan’s modernization (kaika-e), as well as the battle genre (senso-e) dedicated to the events of the Japanese-Chinese (1894–1895) and Russian-Japanese (1904–1905) wars. These attempts to transform the national art allowed to form the ground for the creativity of young masters in the 20th century, who brought traditional engraving to a new level.

Iconography of intertwined branches in M. Buraček’s landscapes during 1917–1924: (regarding problems of adaptation of Young Polish Japonisme in the works of Ukrainian students of the Krakow Academy of Arts)

The purpose of the article is to analyze M. Buraček’s winter landscapes from the collection of the Zaporizhzhia Art Museum: “Winter” (1917), “Apple Trees in Winter. Dziunkiv”(1922), “Branches in the Hoarfrost”(1924) and to substantiate the reflections associated with the Young Polish Japonisme mastered by the Ukrainian artist while studying at the Krakow Academy of Arts. Methodology. In order to solve the problem set in the publication, the following methods were used: comparative – in connection with clarifying the analogies between the landscapes of M. Buraček of 1917–1924 and the plots of Polish artists of the 1900s; hermeneutic - to understand the connection between the traditions of ukiyo-e Japanese woodblock prints and particularities of the Polish improvisations of early XX century. The scientific novelty of the publication consists in the fact that the works of M. Buraček proposed for consideration are analyzed for the first time in the context of the problem of assimilation of Young Polish Japonisme among Ukrainian students of the Krakow Academy of Arts. Conclusions. It was found that the landscape plots of kachō-ga, inspired by the Polish artistic background, had been adapted in the works of M. Buraček during the period: 1917–1924. The then strivings of the below Krakiw pioneers from Young Poland’s artistic environment contributed to the renewal of M. Buraček’s thematic repertoire: W. Weiss, J. Voinarski, K. Gomolaks, T. Richter, F. Ruszczyc, T. F. Simon, J. Stanislawski, W. Tadeusz, J. Tchaikovsky. The study of the landscape repertoire of M. Buraček during 1917–1924, which had been formed during his studies at the Krakow Academy of Arts, results in confirming the Krakiw Japonisme reflections traced in his works attributable to the first quarter of XX century.

The Excellence of Yamazakura: Mountain Cherries and the Disappearing Tradition of Ukiyo-e Craft

Cherry blossom, sakura, is one of the visual symbols of Japan. For Japanese people it represents the beauty and fragility of life. Cherry tree belongs to the Rose family, which includes nearly 3000 different sub-species of flowering plants. Prunus serrulata, sometimes called as Oriental Cherry, is a species native to Japan, Korea and China. In Japan, cherry trees are roughly divided in yamazakura, wild mountain cherries and satozakura, cultivated cherry trees growing in residential areas. Moilanen’s research concentrates on the special properties of yamazakura, and its use in manufacturing printing blocks for traditional ukiyo-e woodblock prints. The unique craft of ukiyo-e is gradually fading into history due to lack of successors. Difficulties in finding proper yamazakura wood material for making the printing blocks add to the problem. Moilanen gives an overview to the art of ukiyo-e and the present day situation in printing block manufacturing. Her article also includes an introduction of other wood qualities used in Japan for printmaking and a short report about a Finnish attempt for finding an alternative wood material to yamazakura. Research on heat-treated alder and birch was conducted in Aalto University in Helsinki 2008–2012. Finally, the current state of yamazakura in Japan is estimated, and the future prospects of ukiyo-e printmaking.

民間傳說與木版版畫：觀音女性化形象在越南

<p>妙善觀音傳說不僅在中國，也在越南的觀音崇拜信仰都形成女性形象的基礎。儘管佛教或崇拜觀音的信仰在十世紀之前已在越南傳播，但直到十四世紀初，這個傳說的出現才在越南得到證實。從十六世紀末到十九世紀末二十世紀初，小說、寶卷、真經等不同類型的妙善觀音傳本被越南文學接受，並翻譯成六八體喃字詩傳。這些喃字傳故事對大眾的文化和宗教生活產生深遠的影響。本論文基於漢喃資料重現妙善觀音傳說傳播的歷史過程，以分析它們對民間雕刻木版畫的影響。其中，各種妙善觀音傳說喃譯版本的民間藝術創作資料，以圖畫的方式呈現，使得版畫成為喃傳觀音故事向公眾傳播喃字故事的渠道。書籍與版畫不僅使崇拜觀音成為越南主流信仰的動力之一，也顯示本土化的女性觀音特徵。 </p> <p>&nbsp;</p><p>The legend of Miaoshan-Guanyin constitutes the foundation of beliefs in the female form of Guanyin not only in China, but also in Vietnam. Although Buddhism and Guanyin beliefs in particular had spread in Vietnam before the 10th century, the appearance of this legend can be confirmed only at the beginning of the 14th century. From the end of the 16th century to the end of the 19th -- beginning of the 20th century, different versions of Miaoshan-Guanyin legend, such as novels (xiaoshuo), precious scrolls (baojuan), and true scriptures (zhenjing), were adapted in Vietnamese literature and translated into six-eight verse narratives. These N&ocirc;m versions have a profound impact on the cultural and religious life of the folk. This article presents the spread of the legend of Miaoshan-Guanyin in Vietnam to analyze its N&ocirc;m adaptions&rsquo;s influence on the folk woodblock prints. The N&ocirc;m versions of the Miaoshan-Guanyin legend which are represented in folk woodblock prints become a channel for transmission of the story of Guanyin to the commoners. Sino-N&ocirc;m manuscripts and woodblock prints not only propagate the worship of Guanyin one of the main driving forces of Vietnam’s mainstream beliefs, but also express characteristics of the localized female form of Guanyin. </p> <p>&nbsp;</p>

Two 19th Century Japanese Souvenir Travel Albums At The Art Gallery Of Ontario

This paper analyzes two nineteenth-century Japanese souvenir travel albums from the Art Gallery of Ontario's collection of photography. The project includes: a literature survey discussing sources and researchers of early photography in Japan; contextual research on the introduction of photographic technology in nineteenth-century Japan and the influence that traditional woodblock prints may have had on the genre of commercial souvenir photographs of Japan; and a detailed description of both album with a potential attribution. Furthermore, the applied component of the project, which entailed documentation of both albums in the form of a catalogue of their 100 tinted albumen prints, is included as an appendix. The paper also provides recommendations for the optimal storage and preservation of both albums, as well as a housing solution. The cataloguing and housing of the two albums will enhance accessibility and facilitate future research of these albums.

Two 19th Century Japanese Souvenir Travel Albums At The Art Gallery Of Ontario

This paper analyzes two nineteenth-century Japanese souvenir travel albums from the Art Gallery of Ontario's collection of photography. The project includes: a literature survey discussing sources and researchers of early photography in Japan; contextual research on the introduction of photographic technology in nineteenth-century Japan and the influence that traditional woodblock prints may have had on the genre of commercial souvenir photographs of Japan; and a detailed description of both album with a potential attribution. Furthermore, the applied component of the project, which entailed documentation of both albums in the form of a catalogue of their 100 tinted albumen prints, is included as an appendix. The paper also provides recommendations for the optimal storage and preservation of both albums, as well as a housing solution. The cataloguing and housing of the two albums will enhance accessibility and facilitate future research of these albums.

The Literary and Legendary Lives of the Onoe Bell

During the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries, a large eleventh-century bronze bell made in Korea became a grand attraction on the grounds of Onoe Shrine in Kakogawa, Japan. Although such bells are made of expensive material that require significant financial investment and technical skill, most are overlooked as common fixtures inside bell towers at Buddhist temples across Asia. Yet the bell at Onoe Shrine has a particularly complex and fascinating story to tell. Using object biography as an approach to study this unusual monument enables us to see how this bell became the popular subject of legends, travel-diary accounts, gazetteer entries, popular woodblock prints, and souvenirs made in a variety of materials. The bell's legendary life story accorded it the ability to solve human problems and use its voice to demand where it should be located, which fueled people's desire to see it with their own eyes and to make physical contact with it. This examination of the bell's intertwining life tales reveals how, after initially serving as a ritual object at a Korean Buddhist temple, it experienced dramatic transformations into a high-value export (or trafficked) commodity, Japanese poetic trope, shrine treasure, and tourist draw.

Visual state symbols of Japan during the Meiji era

This article is dedicated to the visual state symbols of Japan of the late XIX century (national flag, personal seal of the emperor, order and medal of honor, and military insignia). The aforementioned symbols are viewed as the attributes of the status. First institutionalized graphic symbols in the history of the country have emerged under the influence of European culture and actualized elements of the &rdquo;old&rdquo; Japanese culture, primarily &nbsp;from the emblems &ldquo;mon&rdquo; used to decorate and identify an individual or a family. This article explores the mechanisms of their emergence, as well as the mechanisms of evolution and introduction into the cultural environment based on the material of print mass-market production (postcards and Ukiyo-e woodblock prints). The author&rsquo;s main contribution consists in comprehensive analysis of the state symbols of Japan of the late XIX century as the attributes of the status, which has been conducted for the first time. The flag, order and emblem of the emperor were used to demonstrate their direct affiliation to the department, as an attribute of a festive event, or indicate their authority. The research also employed postcards as a rarely used source for studying political symbols, or used in the context of ideology alone. The visual images of print production illustrate the reality of using state symbols, as well as within the framework of artistic techniques expand their use as the symbols.

Jesuits’ Convenevolezza in Printed Illustrations of the Gospel

This essay discusses the printed illustrations in two earliest Chinese Christian books in the Ming dynasty, namely Song nianzhu guicheng誦念珠規程 (Rules for Reciting the Rosary, henceforth: Guicheng) and Tianzhu jiangsheng chuxiang jingjie天主降生出像經解 (Explanation of the Canonical Book about the Lord of Heaven’s Incarnation with Selected Images, henceforth: Jingjie), which have a similar foreign model, the Evangelicae historiae imagines (EHI). Differentiating from the engravings in the EHI, many objects represented in the Chinese woodblock prints refer to Confucian lifestyle, symbols, and philosophies. Focusing on these two books and comparing their illustrations with those in the foreign original, this essay examines the application of convenevolezza to Chinese woodblock prints, illustrating the Jesuits’ policy of accommodating Christianity to Confucianism in this artistic practice.

The influence of Ukiyo-e on the artistic language of easel graphics of A. P. Ostroumova-Lebedeva in the 1900s-1920s (on the example of St. Petersburg collection of woodblock prints)

The article reviews and analyzes the key easel graphic works by A. P. Ostroumova-Lebedeva from St. Petersburg collection of woodblock prints, created over the period from 1900s to 1920s. These works resemble the genre of Japanese art Ukiyo-e. The subject of this research is the uniqueness of the artistic language and the means of its expression in the works of A. P. Ostroumova-Lebedeva. Alongside other Russian artists of the turn of the XIX &ndash; XX centuries she was affected by Ukiyo-e, but perceived the Japanese wood engraving on a more profound level. The author examines the works of accomplished in this period, as well draws parallels with the woodblock prints of Japanese masters, using the formal-stylistic method. This approach is relevant as it reveals the role Japanese woodblock prints played in the establishment of artistic language of A. P. Ostroumova-Lebedeva. Within the Russian art history, this research is one of the few attempts of conducting comparative analysis between the woodblock prints of A. P. Ostroumova-Lebedeva and the works of Japanese masters, which defines the scientific novelty. The conclusion is made that the influence of Ukiyo-e can be traced in the compositional solution and in use of particular Japanese motifs in her works. The artist also contributed to the establishment of woodblock prints as an independent genre of graphic art, having enriched it with the images and color introduced by the Japanese masters.