Japanese crafts provoked a sensation in terms of aesthetics in the second half of the 19th Century. Japonisme is the term designating this phase of the history of taste. However, this so-called Japonisme was not monolithic but included several conflicting phases. The present talk aims at pointing out one of the drastic paradigm shifts experienced in the early reception of Japanese aesthetics. In the field of ceramic arts, most Western collectors continued to appreciate Japanese porcelain as an extension of Rococo Chinoiserie up until ca. 1875. However this traditional value judgment was put into question around 1876-78, when Japan began to introduce historical tea pottery for the Universal Exhibitions. This shift not only caused controversies among Western collectors but also opened up an unexpected way to the Fin-de-siècle aesthetics, known as Art Nouveau. The talk will illustrate this evolution in taste in reference to Henri Focillon’s text on “In praise of Hands.”
Professor Inaga is a specialist in comparative culture, history of cultural exchange. He has published widely on Japonisme and traditional crafts. He is also the editor of Traditional Arts and Crafts in the 21st Century (2007), based on a conference held at the Nichibun in Kyoto the previous year.
This lecture is free but booking is required. Please contact Katrina Royall (k.royall@vam.ac.uk) to reserve a place
The lecture is presented in association with the Victoria and Albert Museum and Royal College of Art History of Design Programme with support from the Eddie Davis Fund