Saturday, May 5, 2pm
Freer Gallery of Art, Washington DC
Late Edo-period Japan was a world on the brink of a new age: natural disasters, increasing foreign threats, “tourism” in the form of religious pilgrimage and exotic Buddhist cults combined to create jarring changes in both popular and spiritual culture. Discover how images of Mount Fuji (in “Hokusai: 36 Views of Mount Fuji” and arhats (“Masters of Mercy: Buddha’s Amazing Disciples” became so iconic in a world where the mundane and the miraculous lived side-by-side, and why their popularity endures today.
Leading scholars in the field, with audience Q & A, will explore life in Edo-period Japan: how the life of the spirit meshed with the everyday. Paintings and prints in the exhibitions contain a wealth of layered infomration about how artists infused their works with references to spiritual issues and aspirations. (See event site).
About the series
Articulations is a series of conversations about art and culture from multiple viewpoints that are inspired by and deepen interest in the themes of Freer|Sackler exhibitions. Articulations programs offer unexpected insights into the art on view at the museum, and strive to be innovative, engaging, and interactive.
About the panelists
James C. Dobbins, Fairchild Professor of Religion at Oberlin College
Patricia Graham, independent art historian
Constantine N. Vaporis, Professor of History at the University of Maryland, Baltimore County
Moderator: James Ulak, Senior Curator of Japanese Art at Freer|Sackler, curator of “Masters of Mercy: Buddha’s Amazing Disciples”
Introductory remarks: Ann Yonemura, Senior Associate Curator of Japanese Art at Freer|Sackler, curator of “Hokusai: 36 Views of Mount Fuji”
For more information on the Freer|Sackler, visit asia.si.edu.
Images, from top: Gohyaku Rakanji, courtesy Patricia Graham. Detail, Thirty-six Views of Mount Fuji: Sazai Hall of the Five-Hundred-Arhat Temple (Gohyakurakanji), by Katsushika Hokusai (1760-1849); Japan, Edo period, ca. 1834; woodblock print; image credit: Minneapolis Institute of Arts, gift of Louis W. Hill Jr. (81.133.201). Detail, The Six Realms: Hell, Five Hundred Arhats: Scroll 22, by Kano Kazunobu (1816-63); Japan, Edo Period, ca. 1854-63; hanging scroll; ink and color on silk; image credit: Collection: Zōjōji, Tokyo, Japan.