Designing Nature in Japanese Art: Rinpa Aesthetics, 1600s to Modern Times December 21, 2012

"Rinpa" - literally meaning "school of Ogata Korin" - is a modern term referring to a distinctive style of Japanese pictorial and applied arts that arose in the early 17th century and has continued into modern times. It embraces art marked by a bold, graphic abbreviation of natural motifs, frequent reference to traditional court literature and poetry, lavish use of expensive mineral and metallic pigments, incorporation of calligraphy into painting compositions, and innovative experimentation with new brush techniques. Featuring some 75 works created in Japan by the Rinpa-school artists, the exhibition traces the development of the Rinpa aesthetic and demonstrates how its style continued to influence artists throughout the 19th and 20th centuries. Comprising some 50 works from the Museum's own holdings, supplemented by some 25 loans from public and private collections on the East Coast, it includes many masters' renowned works in a variety of media-painting, textiles, lacquerware and ceramics. It will be held in two rotations.