Sceneries, Birds and Flowers
Japanese Painting and Graphic Art of the 19th Century

National Gallery in Prague
Collection of Oriental Art
Zbraslav Chateau

March 19 – June 11, 2006

Curator of the exhibition: Helena Honcoopová, Chief Curator of the Collection of Oriental Art of the National Gallery in Prague
Production: Exhibition Department of the National Gallery in Prague, Lucie Zavoralová
Installation: Installation Group of the National Gallery in Prague, Václav Tesárek
Graphic design of the catalogue: Tomáš Coufal
Graphic design of the exhibition: Studio Bolero, Pavel Bosák

Main partner of NG: HVB bank
Main media partner: Hospodářské noviny
Partner: Termo+
Media partners: Art&antique, Classic FM, ČRo 3 - Vltava

The Sceneries, Birds and Flowers exhibition is a celebration of Nature as interpreted in the works of 19th-century Japanese artists. The 150 exhibits that include paintings, prints, albums and artefacts featuring Japanese natural motifs come from the holdings of the National Gallery in Prague. Analogously to the accompanying catalogue, the presentation is divided into two sections, on display in two different rooms: one explores paintings of famous Japanese meishoe sceneries and the other small-scale kachoga bird-and-flower woodcuts and albums. The entrance hall contains vitrines showcasing tekagami painting manuals. These manuals, graced with woodcut print reproductions of large paintings reflecting the Chinese and Japanese art tradition, used to serve for the enjoyment of art-lovers and the edification of novice painters. Other display cases hold gafu albums, published in book form, comprising prints of classical schools of paintings which were active simultaneously with the schools of ukiyoe. Both the classical and popular schools of painting drew information and inspiration from these albums holding reproductions of the finest works by the most outstanding masters. The albums are true artistic gems exemplifying the bold simplicity of the Rimpa decorative style, the eccentric stylizations of the Nanga literati painting (also known as Southern painting), the naturalistic Maruyama and Kishi schools, and the Shiyo school of lyrical abstraction. Special attention is devoted to Japan’s symbol – Mount Fuji which, more than any other mountain in the world, numerous Japanese artists strove to ‘conquer’ from every angle and style of painting. Katsushika Hokusai was the greatest rhapsodist of Mount Fuji. After 1830, his depictions of Mount Fuji evoked such a passionate interest in similar scenic views that they became the principal genre of the popular school of ukiyoe painting. Ando Hiroshige was the most outstanding landscape painter of the 19th century. His appealing colour scenes of the numerous stations along the Tokaido Road and his cityscapes form the core of this exhibition.

The room devoted to the theme of birds and flowers shows still-lifes created in the early 19th century. There are also the unique Japanese rough sketches, ryakuga, in which birds, trees, flowers, fishes and people are illustrated in a few rapid brushstrokes. The artists Kuwagata Keisai, Ueda Kocho, Hokusai, as well as Hiroshige, Kyosai and their followers excelled in this style of painting. The single-sheet prints picturing fishes by Hiroshige and by artists around Hokasai date from the first half of the 19th century. The latter part of the 19th century is represented by book-form albums of birds and flowers produced by masters of that genre’s late period, Kono Bairei, Numada Kashu, Watanabe Seitei, Taki Katei and Ohara Koson.

A number of hanging scrolls with bird-and-flower motifs and three-dimensional nature-inspired artefacts complement the exhibition. These include small porcelain and metal vases, lacquered boxes adorned with floral patterns, ivory and wood netsuke toggles, and tsuba sword guards with carved animals and bird-and-flower designs. These beautifully crafted objects document the Japanese penchant for minute and meticulous ornamental detail. A prominent piece on view is a carved and lacquered perch with the bronze sculptures of falcons. This superb metalwork represented Japan at a number of international exhibitions in the late 19th century. Realistic and costly pieces such as these were in vogue especially during the early times of art-collecting. A celebration of Nature, Sceneries, Birds and Flowers is an event illustrating the profound and intensive appreciation of Nature, which played a prominent role in the moulding of Japan’s distinct arts and culture.

The exhibition is accompanied by a catalogue.

Entrance fee:
Basic: 40 CZK
Reduced: 20 CZK

Opening hours:
Daily except Mondays from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m.      

Contact for journalists:
Tomáš Krejča
tel.: 222 321 459
mob: 606 795 877
e-mail: krejca@ngprague.cz
www.ngprague.cz