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MASUR MUSEUM ORIENTAL ART OBJECTS EXHIBIT

by Dean S. Hartley, Jr.

Photograph by Ken Purcell, The Shutter Bug
ORIENTAL ART OBJECTS EXHIBIT
March 18 - April 30, 1973	masur museum of art

INTRODUCTION

In order to appreciate Oriental art and artifacts, it is necessary to understand first the relationships which have existed from time immemorial between the various countries of that part of the world. In a very great many instances there is a direct and traceable line of relationship and artistic dependency, while in other cases, each country followed its own unique cultural heritage.

It is inevitable that China, which was called the Middle Kingdom (i.e., the center of all social and cultural excellence) should have been the primary and pervading influence. With its thousands of years of superbly organized civilization; with its common written language which allowed widely different groups to communicate even though their spoken languages were mutually unintelligible; with its profound philosophies and deep respect for scholastic achievement; and with its continued reverence for the past and maintenance of historical records, it could in no way avoid exerting a powerful influence - on Japan, on Korea, on the whole complex of Burma and Southeast Asia, and in fact, indirectly, on the then relatively young cultures of Europe. This influence may be discerned by the observant person in many of the artifacts on display here.

Just as surely, however, one should realize that the genuine imprint of the Japanese spirit and people is evident, both in those items which are peculiarly Japanese, and in the adaptations which the Japanese have made of Chinese ideas. This same admonition applies to other countries represented by the items on display. For example, for many centuries, just as French was the recognized language of the educated and cultural persons of the courts of England and mainland Europe, so Chinese was the badge of education and culture in Japan. A truly scholarly person was one who could converse, compose extemporaneously a beautiful poem, or write with his brush in formal Chinese. Even so - and even though Japanese is still written in Kan-ji (literally, "Chinese characters"), the spoken language is truly Japanese - sometimes, however, with alternate pronunciations closely resembling the ancient Chinese. It is the practice, from childhood, of writing/drawing these characters with ink and brush which has led to the distinctive and easily recognized style of painting and decoration in most of the Chinese and Japanese art work.

While Buddhism was "imported" from China around the 5th Century A.D. - and with it, specialists in sculpture, pottery, bronze casting, and many other arts - the Japanese sword (Nippon-To) is completely and uniquely Japanese. One other observation of "relationships" concerns the importance of Korea to this trio of separate cultures. Korea, as a stepping stone between China and Japan, inevitably added some of its own individuality and national character to ideas and methods which passed back and forth between the two larger, more powerful countries. So, although each was influenced by all the others, each still retains its own unique characteristics.

In examining the similarities and dissimilarities, this catalogue will call your attention to several specially designated and numbered items or areas of interest, and will attempt to present some salient points of information about each. You may find it helpful to refer to the chronological chart in the back of the catalogue in order to clarify the comparative dates of, say, Sung Chinese, Koryo Korean, and Heian Japanese periods. The time actually represented in this show extends from about the Fourth Century A.D. to the present. Even so, a definite continuity can be observed in style and shape. We hope you find the items and display interesting and informative.

Dean S. Hartley

ITEMS OF SPECIAL INTEREST

1. Wooden figure of ZAO GONGEN, Kamakura period of Japan (1192-1336 A.D.). Zao Gongen is a deity of the Shinto religion. Shinto, which is a purely Japanese religion based upon the myths of the creation and growth of Japan, coexists in complete harmony with the imported Buddhism, which became popular there in the fifth century A.D. So harmoniously do they exist together that there has been significant cross-transfer of ideas, "heroes", and in some instances, divinities. There is no thought of conflict in following a Shinto ceremony by attendance at and participation in a Buddhist service. The figure is of wood, with "dry lacquer" applied as a finish. Remnants of colored decoration can still be seen.

2. Japanese armor (GUSOKU), the helmet signed "Yoshimasa," and dated to about 1535 A.D. (Momoyama Period). This armor, with the closely placed lacing, is probably that of a General Officer or other high ranking official. The armor of lower ranks and foot soldiers (when they wore any) was characterized by much wider spaced lacings. The helmet of 62 separate plates riveted together is a fine example of the most advanced style of armor making. The lacings are employed to fasten together separate steel plates (covered with lacquer to cover sharp edges and prevent rusting) so as to provide the greatest flexibility and light weight. You will notice that the arms and legs are covered with a chain mail not dissimilar to that employed in Europe at about the same time in history. Unlike the heavy plate armor of Europe, however, which immobilized a "grounded" knight, a Japanese warrior could fight very well afoot. The fan is a symbol of authority or command. The silver inlaid iron objects at either side of his feet are stirrups, which date to about 1650 A.D. The sword was, in this case, called a TACHI, and was worn slung at the left side, cutting edge down, as we wear our swords.

3. The Japanese sword has been regarded with the deepest reverence throughout the history of Japan. It is the finest cutting weapon ever devised; it has been called "the soul of the Samurai," and it is a work of art to which even an Emperor (Go-Toba, ca. 1198) may turn his own physical efforts. The Samurai is the traditional "knight" of the feudal society of ancient Japan. He lived by a code as strict as any known to history, and was ready to pay with his own life (seppuku, commonly known as hara-kiri) for falling short of his duties. While the older style was to carry a TACHI - a sword worn blade edge down at the waist - changing styles of warfare led to the KATANA, worn the scabbard thrust through the sash, cutting edge up. As a mark of distinction, only Samurai were allowed to wear two swords (a long and a medium), as may be seen in the large scroll (No.4) close by. The longer of this pair dates to about 1394, while the shorter dates to about 1504. Note that the scabbards and mounts are a matching set. Merchants were sometimes allowed to wear a single sword, which was usually much more gaudily decorated (3.A.), and court wear also allowed much richer mounts (3.B.) than these primarily fighting swords.

4. During the period immediately following the opening of Japan in the latter 19th Century and very early 20th Century, it was considered "in" for European and American diplomats to have their sons painted in full Samurai regalia as in this scroll. Notice the manner of wearing the DAI-SHO-TO (Long-Short-Swords).

5. Since the beginning of the Eighth Century (at the latest), the manner of forging swords by hand has followed the same traditional methods. Even at that early date, the Japanese swordsmiths achieved technological mastery of the metallurgy of forging and tempering steel that allowed them to make blades with cutting edges which are equal to the middle range of modern tool steel in hardness and toughness. The two bare blades shown here were made by the same procedures, differing in appearance only by minor shape variations and a different pattern in the edge tempering. As it happens, each of these blades is signed and dated - the top one by YOSHI, dated 1345 A.D., while the bottom is by YASUNORI, dated 1935. The plain wooden scabbard below is for storage, not use, and is called SHIRASAYA (white scabbard).

6. The rough looking iron items shown here were prepared in 1963 by Mr. FUJIMURA KUNITOSHI as examples of the various techniques in forging a sword blade. The method he employed in extracting his iron from sand-iron ore, in purifying it, and in combining portions of different hardness to form a blade to his design were identical with those of his spiritual ancestor - the swordsmith of 705 A.D. Mr. Fujimura was a very famous modern swordsmith, having won many prizes for making swords in the manner of famous smiths of seven hundred years ago. He died in 1966 of a stroke while making a sword in his forge. He was 72 years old.

7. Although swords were the primary weapons, the Japanese warrior - and his wife - had many others to choose from under special circumstances. The blades were all forged in the same manner as sword blades, and were equally well made. This strongly curved blade is called a NAGINATA, and was the primary weapon used by the women of a warrior household in defending their home against attack. When not in use, the scabbard with the clan insignia (MON) is placed over the blade. Note the other shapes - generally called YARI - which were used by men, either afoot or on horseback. The very odd pole with the spikes and "fish-hook" head was used to apprehend fleeing criminals - the fish-hooks to twist into his flowing kimono sleeves, the spikes to prevent him from releasing the hooks. It is called a SODE-GARAMI (sleeve grabber).

7.A. This matchlock gun was developed from one obtained by trading with a Portuguese sailor who landed on the remote small southern island of Tanegashima in 1542 A.D. From that time until Japan was "re-opened" in the 1850's by Admiral Perry, they followed the same pattern and mechanism, not improving or changing as the European and American gunmakers did. This was primarily because of the absolute pre-eminence of the sword as a weapon. This style of gun is called TEPPO.

8. Despite the fairly striking regalia of the young man in the scroll previously discussed at No. 4., Samurai were allowed no personal jewelry or decoration, so that whatever ostentation was permitted was found on the swords. For battle, of course, complete sets of iron mounts were appropriate (No. 3, previously described), but for civilian or social occasions, richer sets of "clothes" (mounts) were permitted. This sword guard (TSUBA) of red copper, and the matching handle to the small utility knife carried in a slot in the scabbard were made by a famous Tsuba-maker named JOI around 1750. Other mounts show various rich designs employed in this single area of Samurai personal decoration.

9. CHA-NO-YU - the Japanese tea ceremony - was originally a monastic custom introduced by Japanese Buddhists who had gone to China to study. The essence of the tea ceremony may be translated by such words as calmness, rusticity, harmonious yet unbalanced beauty. The mood is quiet, contemplative, and rigidly ceremonial. Every move has a specific meaning and importance, and each is dedicated to the achievement of the appropriate feeling of total harmony with one's world. Since, to a great degree, the Samurai code was based upon other aspects of Buddhist teachings, there is nothing incongruous in a Samurai having participated in a honorable battle in the morning and enjoying the quietness of CHA-NO-YU in the afternoon. It is all a part of the totality of the Samurai world as seen from his own understanding of the teachings of the Buddha. It is for this reason that the tea ceremony items have deliberately been placed near those of the warrior. Generally, the idea of calmness, simplicity, and oneness with the entire world precluded gaudy utensils in the ceremony itself, although occasionally an exception will be made in the case of a very fine item made by a famous potter of tea ceremony items. The utensils are not usually made as sets, since each piece has its own - sometimes historical - personality. Those shown here are:

a. Cha-wan (tea bowl)
b. Mizuzashi (covered water jar)
c. Cha-ire (small covered tea container)
d. Cha-sen (bamboo tea-whisk for stirring)
e. Ken-sui (broad, open waste-water bowl)
f. Cha-saku (bamboo tea ladle)

As you look around, you will see various styles of tea-bowls - some genuinely old Chinese bowls, which the Japanese particularly admired - some from the many kilns which specialized in this type of potting. You will also see incense containers (KO-GO),  incense burners (KO-RO), vases for single flowers or sprays, dishes for small cakes, etc., all used from time to time in various styles of CHA-NO-YU.

10. Rice wine (SAKE) is the favorite alcoholic drink of the Japanese and Chinese. These are some examples of the iron kettle to heat it (it is served hot), the small individual bottles in which it is served, and the very small cups from which it is drunk. It is also drunk from flat lacquer saucers, one of which you see here.

11. China was almost certainly the first country to perfect the manufacture of porcelain. This small bowl of the Western Chin dynasty (265 - 316 A.D.), while in no way impressive of itself, is a precursor of the beautiful celadons of the later Sung dynasty. This ware is called "Old Yueh," and has one of the earliest controlled color glazes (some Han dynasty ware had a controlled black glaze). The ware itself is porcelainous stoneware, which developed further in the beautiful multicolor T'Ang glazes (notice the later copy of a T'Ang horse, with accurate glaze colors elsewhere in the displays). In later T'Ang periods, a near porcelain was developed, and in the early Sung dynasty, true porcelain was developed. There were several kilns,  which achieved this goal, the wares being such as Ting and Ching Pai. 11.A. is an example of the Ch'ing Pai ware made around the 10th - 13th Centuries. Other Sung dynasty stoneware pieces may be seen here too.

11.B. Concurrent with the Sung dynasty - and extending both earlier and later in Korea - the development of ceramics also proceeded, drawing on native ideas as well as imported Chinese skills and techniques. This bowl is of the Korean Koryo period - around 1150 A.D., and shows Korean adaptation of the Chinese glazes. Other Korean items are arranged with this piece.

12. Developing along lines peculiar to their own cultural preferences, the Koreans produced during the Yi dynasty (1392-1910) a variety of glazes on stoneware and porcelainous articles. This white glazed sake bottle of the middle period of Yi represents a typically Korean rendition, and the one most commonly associated with this period. Other glazes evolved during this period range from refinements of the crackled celadons to opaque cream glazes.

12.B. During the EDO (the old name for Tokyo) period - otherwise called the TOKUGAWA period after the TOKUGAWA Shoguns (who were the effective rulers of Japan, while the "divine" Emperors remained in seclusion) the Japanese brought the art of porcelain making to its highest peak. This eight-sided bowl of the KAKIEMON group (ca. 1630) represents the original models upon which the fame of the Meissen kilns and other European porcelain makers was based. These porcelains were imported into Europe by such eminent collectors as August the Strong, Elector of Saxony (ca. 1700) who required Johann Friederich Bottger to experiment until he discovered a method of producing a genuine porcelain of nearly comparable quality. Some other types of porcelain and stoneware produced in Japan during this period were IMARI, NABESHIMA (of which a modern example exactly paralleling the original is to be seen further along), KUTANI, and HIRADO (12.C.) which was made only at the order of the Lord of the island of Hirado, off the southern coast of Kyusha, around 1750 -1830.

12.D. During the period of the reigns of Emperor Kang Hsi (1662-1722), and of the Emperor Ch'ien Lung (1736-1795) the art of porcelain making reached its peak in China. This small ring-necked bottle vase is of the glaze called "Peach Bloom," and carries the reign mark of Kang Hsi. Notice the combination of reduced copper (red) and oxidized copper (green or "unripe") in the glaze. These two reigns were known for the wide variety and technical excellence of their potting, decorating and glazing, as may be seen from other pieces displayed with this one.

13. Both Chinese and Japanese artists continued to work at very high levels of excellence up until the present. This dish, signed IMAYEMON, is of relatively modern work but is in direct lineage of the style and palette of the original Nabeshima potters. 13.B. is a work attributed to the modern Japanese potter MAKUZU KOZAN (ca. 1870). 13.C. is some of the finest of the so-called "Old Satsuma," probably around 1870. 13.D. is a covered serving dish in the mille fiori pattern, with the reign mark of the Chinese Emperor Kuang Hsiu (1875-1909). Modern Japanese potters are still carrying on the ancient and famous styles on the one hand, while producing new and imaginative designs on the other.

14. Hanging scrolls (Kakemono) are one of the traditional methods of displaying oriental paintings. In this form, they could be rolled up and stored for safety in little space, and the decorative motif of a room could be changed very quickly. This scroll is attributed to 11th - 12th Century Korea, from style of clothing, furniture, etc.

14.A. This scroll is in the style and bears the seal of the most pre-eminent school of Japanese painters of the TOSA School - TOSA MITSUNOBU, ca. 1434-1525.

14.B. This is a very old Chinese scroll, done in the classic styles of Buddhist priest paintings. Notice the use of various brush strokes to evoke the mood and meaning of this painting.

15. This is a modern scroll painted around 1935 by MURAYAMA KOKA. This scroll hung in the Imperial Exhibition for several years, in recognition of the eminence of Murayama, who was an "Imperial Examiner of Art," and the recipient of many other honors as an artist.

16. Yet another favorite use of paintings was to decorate the divider screens (BYOBU) which were so widely used in the more well-to-do Japanese homes. In counterpoint to the TOSA school of painting, the other major school was the KANO school. One of the foremost of the KANO painters, whose signature and seal appears on this four panel byobu was KANO SANRAKU, ca. 1632. The screen as painted here is actually a map of the environs of a major palace.

16.B. This is a small 6-panel table screen in the style of MIYAGAWA CHOSHUN (ca. 1700), who in turn worked in the style of and followed the teachings of one of the foremost genre painters of Japan, MORONOBU.

17. Lacquer ware, made from the thickened sap of the Rhus vernicifera tree is one of the oldest (before the Han dynasty 206 B.C. - 220 A.D.) and most durable of materials used in the orient. There are bowls and boxes in excellent condition dating from the early 8th Century and earlier. The two-drawer box here is a ladies cosmetics cabinet, with a Japanese bronze mirror on the stand. It dates from the middle EDO period (ca. 1770 or earlier). The adjacent carved red cinnabar vase is a typical Chinese rendition, while the small covered box is a modern Okinawan example of the same ancient craft.

18. This mirror is attributed to the Han dynasty, but further research indicates that it is more probably a Sung or even early Ming re-casting. Bronze mirrors of a wide variety of shapes and sizes have been in use in China and Japan for thousands of years. In fact, along with the Japanese sword and the jade curved jewel, the bronze mirror (KAGAMI) makes up the trio of implements of Imperial Regalia in Japan.

19. It was mentioned earlier that Kakemono could be rolled up for easy storage. In the lightly constructed Japanese homes, storage space was always at a minimum, and articles were inevitably designed to fit into the space available. The wooden chest - of HINOKI (Japanese magnolia) - was the usual answer. These chests (TANSU) came in all sizes and shapes. This particular small tansu is a businessman's desk, safe, and reference file. It is of plain wood, iron bound for strength.

20. One of the most beautiful of decorative arts is cloisonné. It is found in ancient Egyptian tombs, in Persian bowls, in the work of Faberge in Russia, and of course and pre-eminently, in China and Japan. The manufacture of cloisonné - each piece an individual effort - is painstaking and slow. Normally the base shape is formed of metal (copper or bronze), a design of very fine cloisons (small flat fences) is soldered to the metal base, and the design is filled with appropriate colors in powdered form. This is fired to melt the pigment into a soft glass, which shrinks. The process is then repeated until all the cloisons are filled, at which time the surface is leveled and polished to a high gloss. The cloisons may then be gilded to set off the rich colors. The forms and designs are limitless, the colors vary from dull opaques to fiery transparent or translucent shades. In some instances, the thin metal base is eaten away by acids, leaving only the "stained glass" effect of the Japanese crystal cloisonné bowl (20.A.). This figure of a standing crane is typical of the work and style of the Ch'ien Lung period ( 1736-1795).

21. Lest we erroneously conclude that the Orientals had no appreciation for music, these Japanese instruments represent literally centuries of such appreciation. Although each of these instruments probably dates back no further than 1825, each has an ancient lineage reaching back to 575 A.D. and earlier. The gourd shaped instrument is a BIWA, with antecedents in ancient China. The small long handled instrument is the famed SAMISEN of the Geisha, and the small tunable drum (TSUZUMI) is used regularly in Kabuki and Noh dramas.

We hope you have enjoyed this display. If you have any suggestions or questions, please refer them to the staff.

Thank you,

Dean S. Hartley

masur museum of art city of monroe . 1400 south grand . monroe . louisiana 71201 Hours: Tues.-Thurs. 10:00 - 6:00, Sat.-Sun. 2:00 - 5:00, Mon. Closed

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