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Celebrating Asian Art   

ASIA WEEK

NEW YORK

BachmannEckenstein Japanese Art Presents Japanese Art | Pre-modern and beyond

March 3, 2024
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Fukuda Kodojin, Moon over Azure Mountains, 1899, ink and color on paper, 18¾ x 13¼ in (47.6 x 33.7 cm), Mounting: 50½ x 18¾ in (128.5 x 47.5 cm)

Japanese Art | Pre-modern and beyond
March 15–19, 2024
Asia Week Hours: Mar 15-19, 11am-6pm (otherwise by appointment)
Leslie Feely 1044 Madison Avenue, Suite #4F

Hailing from Switzerland, BachmannEckenstein Japanese Art is pleased to be exhibiting Japanese Art | Pre-modern and beyond during this upcoming Asia Week New York featuring outstanding artists’ letters, trending Kintsugi pieces and paintings by Fukuda Kodojin which recently were exhibited in the artist’s monumental retrospective at the Minneapolis Institute of Art. They look forward to welcoming you at 1044 Madison Avenue, Suite #4F from March 15th through the 19th.

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Kintsugi Teabowl, Karatsu ware, Momoyama period, H: 1 ¾ in (4.5 cm), D: 5 ½ in (14 cm), Ex coll. Matsunaga Jian (1875-1971), Collector’s box

To learn more, click here.

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Art Passages’ Indian Paintings: Latest Acquisitions

March 2, 2024
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A Wedding Celebration, c. 1780, Tamil Nadu, Thanjavur, Company School, ink, opaque watercolor, and gold on paper

Indian Paintings: Latest Acquisitions
March 13–19, 2024
Online Exhibition

Art Passages will present Indian Paintings: Latest Acquisitions, an online exhibition of Indian paintings exhibiting a wide array of schools and subject matter during Asia Week New York. From Mughal portraiture to Company School, these paintings reflect the taste and interest of their patrons: Nobles, devotees, and English resident rulers of India. Among the highlights is Wedding Celebration, a Company School watercolor, circa 1788.

To learn more, click here.

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Alisan Fine Arts Asia Week New York Exhibitions

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Kelly Wang (b. 1992), Red Lotus 2, 2023, ink, xuan paper, pigment and resin on aluminum, 30 x 30 inches

Landscape as Metaphor: Contemporary Voices
and
Lui Shou-Kwan: Shifting Landscapes
February 27–April 27, 2024
Asia Week Hours: Mar 14-16 & 18-22, 10-6pm; Mar 17 by appointment only
Asia Week New York Opening Reception: Thursday, March 14 from 5-8pm
120 East 65th Street

With their first location in the States, Alisan Fine Arts’s newly opened gallery space on New York City’s Upper East Side presents two exhibitions in conversation with each other during this season’s Asia Week New York.

Landscape as Metaphor: Contemporary Voices is a group exhibition featuring artists Bouie Choi, Chu Chu, Lam Tung Pang, Kelly Wang and Yang Yongliang, each of whom distinctively interpret the subject of landscape. While connected through observations of landscapes, spaces and cities, the works in this exhibition span a wide variety of mediums and each artist goes beyond physical observation to reveal deeply personal experiences and parts of their own identities.

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Lui Shou-Kwan (1919-1975), Zen Painting 1970, A70-19, 1970, Chinese ink & color on paper, 151.5 x 82.5 cm

And on view in conjunction with Asia Week New York is Shifting Landscapes, a solo exhibition celebrating the art of pioneering ink artist Lui Shou-Kwan (1919-1975). Lui’s first exhibition in New York highlights transformative works from the artist’s career that bridged tradition and modernity while also sparking new dialogue in the international art community. Lui was a vanguard figure of the New Ink Movement in Hong Kong, a movement that reimagined the Chinese Ink tradition and flourished from the 1950s to 1970s. Extremely influential to the following generation of artists, Lui was instrumental in transforming traditional Chinese ink painting into a modern, global art form.

Accompanying Asia Week New York, Alisan Fine Arts will be hosting a reception and meet-and greet with artist Kelly Wang on March 14th from 5-8pm.

To learn more, click here.

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The Art of Japan’s Japanese Prints from 1750-1950

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Kitagawa Utamaro (1753-1806), Series: A Guide to Women’s Contemporary Style Title: Courtesan of the Northern Quarter, Publisher: Murata-ya Jirobei, woodblock print

Japanese Prints from 1750-1950
March 15–17, 2024
Asia Week Hours: Mar 15-17, 10am-6pm (otherwise by appointment)
The Mark Hotel 25 East 77th Street, Suite 215

For our 15th season of Asia Week New York, The Art of Japan, which is based in Medina, Washington, will return to New York with Japanese Prints, 1750-1950. On view will be a complete set of Utamaro’s famous 12 Hours in the Yoshiwara, in addition to other major works by Hiroshige, Eishi, Kiyochika and others. As in past years, the owners and collectors Richard Waldman and Doug Frazer will be located at the Mark Hotel. Both men bring decades of experience, a wealth of knowledge, and an abundance of enthusiasm to the field, as well as exceptional examples of Japanese woodblock prints. They look forward to displaying these Japanese prints in the traditional manner in folders in a comfortable and quiet setting.

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Katsukawa Shun’ei (1762-1819), Hatsuakebono no Kaomise Soga, Performed at the Miyako-za 1794, 1794, woodblock print

To learn more, click here.

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Carlton Rochell Asian Art and Shibunkaku Participating in TEFAF Maastricht

March 1, 2024
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TEFAF Maastricht
March 9–14, 2024
Forum 100, 6229 GV Maastricht, The Netherlands

Two of our Asia Week New York members, Carlton Rochell Asian Art and Shibunkaku, will be participating in the TEFAF Maastricht fair next weekend with their fine collections of Asian Art

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Mandala of Shakya Simha, Tibet, late 14th century, distemper and gold highlights on cotton canvas, 33 1/8 x 29 1/8 in (84.2 by 74 cm)

Carlton Rochell Asian Art will be in Booth 168 showcasing an exceptional Mandala of Shakya Simha, among other fine Indian, Himalayan, and Southeast Asian art pieces.

To learn more, click here.

ShibunkakuMaastricht

While Shibunkaku in Booth 191 will present Harmony: Vitality in Coexistence exhibiting works of representative Japanese artists spanning from mid-Edo period to modern paintings and postwar avant-garde calligraphy, all the way to contemporary bronze artworks.

To learn more, click here.

They look forward to welcoming you to Maastricht soon!

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AWNY Preview Part III: Showcasing Fine Prints and Paintings during Asia Week New York

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Top L-R: Hiroshi Yoshida (1876-1950), Mount Breithorn, oil on canvas, signed H. Yoshida to lower left corner, ca. 1925, painting: 17 7/8 x 23 7/8 in., frame: 23 3/4 x 29 5/8 in., Scholten Japanese Art; Sekine Yoshio, No. 174, oil on canvas, 1968, 33.5 x 24.4 cm; 35 x 26 cm (overall), Shinbunkaku; Tsukioka Yoshitoshi (1839-1892), Raiko Conquering the Shuten Doji Demon of Oe Mountain, 1864, Japanese color woodblock print triptych, 37.1 x 77.7 cm, Egenolf Gallery Japanese Prints; Hosoda Eishi (1756−1829), Standing Beauty with a Letter in her Hand, hanging scroll: ink, color, and gold pigment on silk, 30½ x 9¾ in., Kansei era, circa 1793−95, signed: Eishi zu, sealed: Kakei, Sebastian Izzard LLC Asian Art; Bottom L-R: Chung Sanghwa, Untitled 86-2-6, 1986, acrylic on canvas, 39 1/4 x 25 1/2 in., HK Art & Antiques LLC; Ken Matsubara, Green Dragon 青龍（額・炉縁), pigment on paper, H6.6 × W42.5 × D42.5 cm, Ippodo Gallery; Kitagawa Utamaro, Series: A Guide to Women’s Contemporary Style Title: Courtesan of the Northern Quarter, publisher: Murata-ya Jirobei, fine impression, color, and condition, The Art of Japan; Joo Myung Duck, Seoul, 2011, archival pigment print, 20 x 30 in., © Joo Myung Duck/Datz Museum of Art & Miyako Yoshinaga Gallery

As part III of our Asia Week New York previews, prepare to experience beautiful prints and paintings from eight of our esteemed dealers in just two weeks!

The Art of Japan
Japanese Prints from 1750-1950
March 15–17, 2024
The Mark Hotel 25 East 77th Street, Suite 215

The Art of Japan will present Japanese Prints, 1750-1950 with 50 new prints now online. On view is a complete set of Utamaro’s famous 12 Hours in the Yoshiwara, in addition to other major works by Hiroshige, Eishi, Kiyochika and others.

Egenolf Gallery Japanese Prints
Supernatural: Cat Demons, Ogres and Shapeshifters
March 16–17, 2024
Conrad New York Midtown 151 W 54th St (near 7th Ave)

Egenolf Gallery Japanese Prints will showcase Japanese prints of cat monsters, shapeshifting beauties, and other fantastic scenes of the supernatural. Spectral scenes were essential ingredients of kabuki plays, and ukiyo-e of the time reflect the excitement and drama of this mainstay of 19th c. popular culture. Artists drew from the long tradition of supernatural stories in Japan, which dates back hundreds of years, even into the folklore of prehistory.

HK Art & Antiques LLC
Korean Artists in Paris
March 15 – April 5, 2024
49 East 78th Street, Suite 4B

Curated by Heakyum Kim and Pierre Cambon, the former curator at the Musée Guimet, Korean Artists in Paris at HK Art & Antiques showcases the work of Chung Sanghwa, Shin Sung Hy, Nam Kwan and Kim Sang-lan, four Korean artists who have lived and worked in Paris. Known in both Korea and France, their successful careers cover a great span of time, from the 1950s to the present. Each artist demonstrates how the two countries impacted their work.

Ippodo Gallery
Cosmic Sound: Master Paintings by Ken Matsubara
March 14–April 4, 2024
Opening Reception with Artist & Performance: Thursday, March 14th, 5-8pm (RSVP required)
32 East 67th Street, 3rd Floor

Ippoodo Gallery is proud to present Cosmic Sound: Master Paintings by Ken Matsubara, a culmination of the artist’s concepts featuring 20 of the beloved painter’s unique artworks, including three works depicting the auspicious and fearsome dragon zodiac, the spectacular 12-panel Kūkai’s View, and versions of Scenery and the Moon Sound. There will also be a special otsuzumi drum performance during the opening reception by Shonosuke Okura.

Sebastian Izzard LLC Asian Art
Japanese Paintings, Prints, and Illustrated Books, 1760-1810
March 15–22, 2024
17 East 76th Street, 3rd Floor

Sebastian Izzard’s spring exhibition explores the graphic culture of Edo in the late eighteenth and early nineteenth centuries, as well as chronicling changes in fashions and political affairs that affected the world of ukiyo-e. Suzuki Harunobu (1724–1770) and his contemporaries are represented as are his successors in the following decades such as Torii Kiyonaga and Kitagawa Utamaro.

Scholten Japanese Art
COLLECTING THE MASTER: The Binnie Collection of Hiroshi Yoshida Paintings
March 14–22, 2024
145 West 58th Street, Suite 6D

Scholten Japanese Art is pleased to exhibit COLLECTING THE MASTER: The Binnie Collection of Hiroshi Yoshida Paintings. This private collection of paintings by the great 20th century artist, Hiroshi Yoshida (1876-1950) was assembled by prominent woodblock print artist, Paul Binnie (b. 1967) and celebrates the culmination of Binnie’s decades-long pursuit of building a comprehensive representation of Yoshida’s work.

Shibunkaku
Postwar Japanese Calligraphy and Painting
March 14–April 19, 2024
Joan B. Mirviss Ltd 39 East 78th Street, Suite 401

Postwar Japanese Calligraphy and Painting at Shibunkaku will focus on contemporary paintings by the artist Sekine Yoshio, who participated in the founding of the Gutai Art Association. He left Gutai in 1959 and pursued the creation of abstract canvases using real-life objects as motifs which attracted attention to his unique style, a “hybrid of figurative and abstract art.”

Miyako Yoshinaga
Joo Myung Duck: Sensory Space in Photography and its Conversation with Korean Abstract Painting
March 8–April 13, 2024
24 East 64th Street, Third Floor

Miyako Yoshinaga is pleased to present Joo Myung Duck: Sensory Space in Photography and its Conversation with Korean Abstract Painting. This solo exhibition of Joo Myung Duck will showcase the artist’s transition from social realism to abstract photography and also strive to shed light on this master photographer’s relationship with Korean abstract art, particularly, the artists of the Dansaekhwa movement investigating their shared aesthetic, methodology, and philosophy.

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Asia Week March 2024 Auction Guide

February 29, 2024
AWNY2024AuctionHouses

This year’s Asia Week New York brings together an exceptional collection of Asian works of art on offer from the following six auction houses. Be sure to mark your calendars for their viewings and sales!

Auction Viewing and Sale Schedule
Asia Week New York March 2024

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A Brilliant Blue and White ‘Lotus’ Mallet Vase, Xuande mark, Kangxi, h: 9 7/8 in (25.1 cm), Lot 71, Estimate: US$15,000-US$20,000, Bonhams, Passion and Philanthropy Chinese Art from The Metropolitan Museum of Art

BONHAMS
Passion and Philanthropy: Chinese Art from The Metropolitan Museum of Art
Auction: Monday, March 18, 9am EDT
Viewing: March 13-17, 10am-5pm

Chinese Ceramics and Works of Art Including Chinese Art from the Simone and Alan Hartman Collection Part II
Auction: Monday, March 18, 1pm EDT
Viewing: March 13-17, 10am-5pm

Classical and Modern Chinese Paintings
Auction: Tuesday, March 19, 9am EDT
Viewing: March 13-17, 10am-5pm, March 18 by appointment

Fine Chinese Snuff Bottles from a Private American Collection
Auction: Tuesday, March 19, 12pm EDT
Viewing: March 13-17, 10am-5pm, March 18 by appointment

The Richard C. Blum and Senator Dianne Feinstein Collection of Himalayan Art
Auction: Wednesday, March 20, 11am EDT
Viewing: March 13-19, 10am-5pm

Indian, Himalayan & Southeast Asian Art
Auction: Wednesday, March 20, 1pm EDT
Viewing: March 13-19, 10am-5pm

The Joseph and Elena Kurstin Collection of Inro
Auction: Thursday, March 21, 10am EDT
Viewing: March 13-20, 10am-5pm

Fine Japanese and Korean Art including Japanese Screens from the Metropolitan Museum of Art and The Simone and Alan Hartman Collection of Japanese Art Part II
Auction: Thursday, March 21, 12:30pm EDT
Viewing: March 13-20, 10am-5pm

Arts of India, Southeast Asia & The Himalayas Online
Online: March 15–22

Indian Paintings: Including selections from the Conley Harris Collection
Online: March 15-22

To learn more and for up-to-date information, click here.

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A Superb and Very Rare GE Foliate Dish, Southern Song-Yuan Dynasty (1127-1368), 5 ½ in. (14 cm) diam., fitted cloth box; Lot 912, Estimate: US$1,800,000-US$2,500,000, Christie’s, Important Chinese Art Including the Collection of Dorothy Tapper Goldman

CHRISTIE’S
Japanese and Korean Art
Auction: Tuesday, March 19 at 10am EDT
Viewing: March 16–18, 10am-5pm

Indian, Himalayan and Southeast Asian Works of Art
Auction: Wednesday, March 20 at 9am EDT
Viewing: March 16–19, 10am-5pm

South Asian Modern + Contemporary Art Including Works from the Collection of Umesh and Sunanda Gaur
Auction: Wednesday, March 20 at 11am EDT
Viewing: March 16–19, 10am-5pm

Important Chinese Art Including the Collection of Dorothy Tapper Goldman
Auction: Thursday, March 21 at 9am EDT & Friday, March 22 at 9am EDT
Viewing: March 16–19, 10am-5pm; March 20, 10am-2pm

Landscapes of Japan: Woodblock Prints from Edo to Post-War
Online: March 13–26, 10am EDT

South Asian Modern + Contemporary Art Online
Online: March 13–27, 10am EDT

Arts of Asia Online
Online: March 13–28, 10am EDT
Viewing: March 16–19, 10am-5pm; March 20, 10am-2pm

Chinese Works of Art from the Collection of Dorothy Tapper Goldman
Online: March 13–29, 10am EDT
Viewing: March 16–19, 10am-5pm; March 20, 10am-2pm

Special Exhibition: From Protégé to Master: The Chinese Painting Collection of Harold Wong
March 16-20, 2024
Viewing: Sat-Tue, 10am-5pm; Wed, 10am-2pm
Lecture: Sunday, March 17th at 6:30pm (registration required)

Guided Tours with Robert D. Mowry, Christie’s Senior Consultant
Saturday, 16 March, 11am
Monday, 18 March, 11am
Please meet at the front reception desk

To learn more and for up-to-date information, click here.


A Large Chinese Parcel Gilt Lacquered Bronze Figure of Amitabha, Doyle, Asian Works of Art

DOYLE
Asian Works of Art
Auction: Tuesday, March 19, 10am EDT
Viewing: March 15-18, 12-5pm

Asian Works of Art: Session II
Auction: Wednesday, March 20, 10am EDT
Viewing: March 15-18, 12-5pm

To learn more and for up-to-date information, click here.


 Heritage Auctions

HERITAGE AUCTIONS
Asian Art Signature® Auction
Auction: Wednesday, March 20
Viewing: March 15-19, 10am-5pm (times subject to change)

To learn more and for up-to-date information, click here.


Pair of Chinese Zitan, Cloisonné and Gilt Bronze Lantern Stands, iGavel, The Shahmoon Family Collection of Asian, European and Other Works of Art

iGAVEL
The Shahmoon Family Collection of Asian, European and Other Works of Art
Viewing: March 14–22 10am–5pm, closed Sunday
Online: March 12–April 2

Chinese and Other Works of Art
Viewing: March 14–22 10am–5pm, closed Sunday
Online: March 19–April 4

To learn more and for up-to-date information, click here.

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A monumental gilt-bronze figure of Panjarnata Mahakala, Mark and Period of Xuande, overall Height: 29 1/8 in. (74 cm); Lot 1, Estimate US$4,000,000- US$6,000,000, Sotheby’s, Wrathful Deities: Masterworks from the Bodhimanda Foundation

SOTHEBY’S
The Virginia & Ravi Akhoury Collection
Auction: Monday, March 18 at 11:00am EDT
Viewing: March 14, 15 & 17, 10am-5pm; March 16, 10am-6pm

Modern & Contemporary South Asian Art
Auction: Monday, March 18 at 11:30am EDT
Viewing: March 14, 15 & 17, 10am-5pm; March 16, 10am-6pm

Wrathful Deities: Masterworks from the Bodhimanda Foundation
Auction: Tuesday, March 19 at 9:00am EDT
Viewing: March 14-15, 17-18, 10am-5pm; March 16, 10am-6pm

Chinese Art
Auction: Tuesday, March 19 at 9:15am EDT & Wednesday March 20 at 9:15am EDT
Viewing: March 14-15, 17-18, 10am-5pm; March 16, 10am-6pm

Indian & Himalayan Art
Auction: Thursday, March 21 at 10:00am EDT
Viewing: March 14-15, 17-20, 10am-5pm; March 16, 10am-6pm

SELLING EXHIBITION
Foundations of Abstraction: Paintings From the Estate of C. C. Wang
March 14-20, 2024
Viewing: Mon–Fri & Sun, 10am-5pm; Sat, 10am-6pm

SPECIAL EXHIBITION
Eminent People of the Qing Dynasty: An Exhibition of Imperial Portraits from the Collection of Dora Wong
March 14-20, 2024
Viewing: Mon–Fri & Sun, 10am-5pm; Sat, 10am-6pm

To learn more and for up-to-date information, click here.

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China Institute Gallery’s Upcoming Exhibition

Shan Shui Reboot: Re-envisioning Landscape for a Changing World
March 7 – July 7, 2024
Curator Talk with Artist, Thursday, March 7 at 6:30pm
Asia Week Open House, Thursday, March 21 (free admission)

China Institute Gallery is pleased to open their newest exhibition, Shan Shui Reboot: Re-Envisioning Landscape for a Changing World, next Thursday, March 7th.  The exhibition highlights a new generation of artists who are reinterpreting traditional Chinese landscape painting in the context of today’s global social issues and climate crisis. Shan shui refers to the time-honored painting of natural landscapes with brush and ink focused on an awareness of inner spiritual philosophy. The exhibition features the recent work of seven established and emerging artists including Lam Tung Pang, Yi Xin Tong, Kelly Wang, Peng Wei, Fu Xiaotong, Yang Yongliang, and Ni Youyu. More than 40 works – including paintings, photographs, installation, and video – will be exhibited, and many are being shown in New York for the first time.

Related programs include a Curator’s Talk with the artists on opening day, March 7th, from 6:30-8pm, as well as an Open House during Asia Week on Thursday, March 21st with free admission and light refreshments.

To learn more and reserve your ticket, click here.

 

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Go Glamping with Songtsam

February 28, 2024

Plan your next adventure at Songtsam Glamping Palpa, the boutique luxury Hotels, Resorts & Destination Management Company’s first glamping property in Tibet that opened last summer. Located in Baiba Village on the Niyang River, the glamping property provides guests with a luxury outdoor camping experience, where they are surrounded by snow-capped mountains, forests and pastures.

In all, Songtsam Glamping Palpa has 30 accommodation tents, 4 dining tents and 1 public leisure tent. Each tent is equipped with modern amenities including a private bathroom, continuous hot water, an exquisite copper wash basin, a toilet with heating functions, soft leather sofas, Lhasa handmade wool carpets, and bedding.

The four dining tents in Songtsam Glamping Palpa offer traditional Tibetan dishes, free afternoon tea and welcomes guests to sit under a hawthorn tree, while enjoying snacks and refreshments.

In addition to enjoying the natural surroundings, guests are able to learn local activities from Gongbu Tibetans, the villagers living in Baiba Village, such as how to shoot a Gongbu sound arrow and horse riding.

The Palpa Glamping site adheres to Songtsam’s principles of sustainability and eco-friendly tourism pledging to contribute a portion of its income to the development of Baiba village.

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Upcoming Exhibitions at Smithsonian’s National Museum of Asian Art

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Embossed gold jar (detail), Ōnuma Chihiro (b. 1950), Japan, Shōwa era, 1988, hammered copper with amalgam gilding (kinkeshi), National Museum of Asian Art, Smithsonian Institution, Bequest of Shirley Z. Johnson, S2022.8.37a–c © Ōnuma Chihiro

Mark your calendars for these upcoming exhibitions at Smithsonian’s National Museum of Asian Art!

Striking Objects: Contemporary Japanese Metalwork
March 2, 2024 – early 2026
Arthur M. Sackler Gallery, Gallery 22

Contemporary Japanese metalworking breathes life into traditional methods that have been passed down and practiced over generations. The artists featured in Striking Objects create masterpieces that combine tradition with creativity and innovation. The exhibition highlights works from the collection of Shirley Z. Johnson (1940–2021), distinguished lawyer, philanthropist, and former board member of the National Museum of Asian Art. Her passion for contemporary Japanese metalwork and her visionary gift have made the National Museum of Asian Art home to the largest collection of such works in the United States.

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Landscape (detail), Hosokawa Rinkoku (1782–1842), Japan, Edo period, 1835, handscroll, ink and color on paper, Freer Gallery of Art Collection, National Museum of Asian Art, Smithsonian Institution, The Mary and Cheney Cowles Collection, Gift of Mary and Cheney Cowles, F2021.4.11a–c

Imagined Neighbors: Japanese Visions of China, 1680–1980
March 16 – September 3, 2024
Freer Gallery of Art, Galleries 5, 6, 6a, 7, 8

During the Edo period (1603–1868), feudal Japan was largely closed off from the outside world. For three hundred years, a loose movement of Japanese artists, often referred to as literati, turned to neighboring China—variably a source for emulation and a source of rivalry—for inspiration. Through painting and calligraphy, they created immersive environments in which artists and viewers alike could mentally withdraw from worldly affairs. As disparate and diverse as the literati movement was, its members were united by a common language that embraced diverse notions of “China”—a place both familiar and foreign, as much imagined as it was known. Throughout a period of modernization during the Meiji era (1868–1912) and after, when all facets of life in Japan were radically changing, China’s historic role in helping shape the fabric of Japanese history and culture remained a touchstone for Japanese artists, even in the context of imperialism and war.

Imagined Neighbors presents Japanese artworks from the Mary and Cheney Cowles Collection, given to the National Museum of Asian Art between 2018 and 2022. The Cowles Collection is arguably the largest and most comprehensive group of Japanese literati works outside of Japan. The paintings and calligraphy in this exhibition fuse reality with imagination and remain important to understanding the continuing, complex engagement of Japanese artists with China, to them both a real and an imagined place.

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Composite image: Akogi (detail), from the series Nōgaku zue, Tsukioka Kōgyo (1869–1927), Japan, Meiji era, March 1, 1899, woodblock print, ink and color on paper, Robert O. Muller Collection, Arthur M. Sackler Gallery, National Museum of Asian Art, Smithsonian Institution, S2003.8.2898; Nakamura Utaemon III as Taira no Tomomori (detail), Ryūsai Shigeharu (1803–1853), Publisher: Wataya Kihei (ca. 1809–1885), Japan, Edo period, 1831, woodblock print, ink and color on paper, The Anne van Biema Collection, Arthur M. Sackler Gallery, National Museum of Asian Art, Smithsonian Institution, S2004.3.279

Staging the Supernatural: Ghosts and the Theater in Japanese Prints
March 23 – October 6, 2024
Arthur M. Sackler Gallery, Gallery 25

Throughout Japanese cultural history, the boundary between the real world and the world of supernatural beings has been remarkably porous. Certain sites, states of mind, or periods in the lunar cycle made humans particularly vulnerable to ghostly intervention. The Edo period (1603–1868) was a crucial stage in the development and solidification of ideas about the supernatural. Many of the beliefs that gained currency at this time are still held as conventional wisdom in Japan today.

Supernatural entities came to life especially during noh and kabuki theater performances. Explore—if you dare—the roles that ghosts and spirits play in the retelling of Japanese legends and real events. Staging the Supernatural brings together a collection of vibrant, colorful woodblock prints and illustrated books depicting the specters that haunt these two theatrical traditions.

To learn more about each of these exhibits, click here.

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