The Portland Art Museum has an interesting collection of Japanese art.
According to the display:
“These handsome braziers are unusual in that they incorporate old painted and gilded arrows in the design—a clever and attractive way to recycle weapons no longer in use.”
According to the display:
“Chikuami was part of the generation that transformed bamboo weaving from craft into art. Although he never deviated from the tradition of making functional objects, his innovative technique and use of materials won recognition at national competitive exhibitions and among foreign collectors.”
According to the display:
“This heavily iron-reinforced wooden chest is an example of furniture made at the town of Ogi on Sado Island for use by ship captains. Intended for the secure transport of documents, the safe features a complex locking mechanism and a secret inner drawer. The pine tree crest on the front would have identified the owner.”
According to the display:
“In 1632, the kilns in Nagano village in Shigaraki Valley were designated as producers of the “official” tea jars for government use. These jars served as containers for tea leaves harvested in nearby Uji for presentation to the Tokugawa shogun, the military dictator of Japan.”
According to the display:
“A leading participant in the second generation of female ceramists to change the landscape of Japanese contemporary clay, Fukumoto draws inspiration from the moon, sun, and stars.”
According to the display:
“The complexity of this somewhat crowded design was perfectly suited to the Victorian tasted of the European and American markets at the time.”