Girl with Flowering Plum Branches, Nihonga artist, 1920s, Japan, hanging scroll; ink and mineral colors on silk, overall size: 93¼ x 37 in.

Nihonga: Japanese Pre-War Paintings
September 12 – 20, 2024
Opening hours: 11am-5pm, including Saturday September 14
9 East 63rd Street

Thomsen Gallery is pleased to present Nihonga: Japanese Pre-War Paintings during this season’s Asia Week New York Autumn 2024. The exhibition focuses on folding screens and hanging scroll paintings from the Taisho era (1912-26) and early Showa era (1926-1989), a time of great change for Japan and its arts. Superb works were created for the domestic market, in contrast to the export-oriented output during the preceding Meiji era (1868-1912). Though most painters of the Taisho and early Showa eras typically remained focused on traditional themes, they often experimented with new materials and perspectives. They shifted from stylized depictions of nature to naturalistic botanical studies. Making trips abroad, many painters incorporated foreign elements from their travels into their work.

Next to painting, bamboo baskets and intricate gold lacquer boxes from the Taisho and Showa eras will highlight the technical perfection in works of art that were executed in traditional formats and materials but explored new worlds of expression and design.