Seventy-Seven Dances: Japanese Calligraphy by Poets, Monks and Scholars at the Morikami Museum and Japanese Gardens October 6, 2008

Borrowing from private and public collections across the United States, this exhibition features seventy-seven two- and three-dimensional objects displaying Japanese calligraphy in its full range and potential. The works on display reveal the remarkably creative flowering of the art of writing during Japan’s Momoyama and Edo Periods (16th to 19th centuries). Texts ranging from thorny Zen conundrums to gossamer haiku poems are written with verve, energy and creativity, demonstrating how deeply calligraphy penetrated the social fabric of Japan. The exhibition visually expresses the mind of Japanese poets, scholars and monks, ranging from Emperor Goyozei to the nun Rengetsu, and includes such masters as Shojo Shokado, Rai Sanyo, Ishikawa Jozan, Ike Taiga, Hakuin Ekaku and others. Seventy-Seven Dances is organized and circulated by the University of Richmond Museums. Exhibition at The Morikami is funded in part by the Henri and Tomoye Takahashi Charitable Foundation, the Mary Livingston Griggs and Mary Griggs Burke Foundation and the State of Florida, Department of State, Division of Cultural Affairs and the Florida Arts Council.

Official Website: http://www.morikami.org