Japanese Art

[Bugzee]

Many mangakas have been influenced by art in one way or another; both in the traditional sense and from the modern era. Japan is home to a wide variety of art-forms and related cultures that ultimately intertwine together.

“The country of Japan is known for its rich art history that stretches over hundreds of years. Over the years the Japanese have maintained their traditional styles while incorporating foreign influences within their own framework. Japanese art is found in a diverse range of mediums showcasing the aesthetic sense and craftsmanship of it’s people.
From beautiful paintings to exquisite pottery and from the artistic sculptures to the unique art of flower arrangement known as Ikebana you will find that the Japanese artists have expressed themselves through a wide range of mediums. Another unique form of art from Japan is that of Origami which involves folding paper in order to create designs. The Japanese are also known for their tattoo designs which have now spread all over the world.” - Text from kwintessential.

Calligraphy, Lacquer, Painting, Pottery, Prints and Sculpture are just a few of many art-forms that have had a great importance and influence in Japan. This thread is to share, discuss, appreciate, learn and dedicate all forms of Japanese Art.

[benelori]

Very good thread...I kinda like every artform manifested in Japan, but not just, so I'm interested in this stuff, but I'm not really an expert...
What I would like to add to your list of impressive forms of art:architecture.

Basically what we can see most of the time in Japanese architecture is the chinese influence, with those pointy and curved at the bottom roof style, pillars, towers...
Another very interesting thing which you kind of touched with mentioning ikebana, is japanese art or gardening...how many of us doesn't know about japanese gardens, their layout or philosophy behind it...

But one of the best forms of art is definitely calligraphy IMO...it's contains traces of painting, aesthetic writing, but the importance lies in adding UR own touch, personality to the drawing...of course after achieving a certain level of mastery over it...

I will post some more in the weekend, because contemporan japanese literature is fascinating, along with japanese theater

[Bugzee]

I was thinking of making a separate thread solely for Japanese Architecture.

I got the impression that it would be merged with this one though. I believe it needs it's own thread tbh. I guess I'll wait until Destiny is online before I do anything lol.

Thanks! I'm glad you like the thread idea Benny!

[juliadesusa]

Japanese Art and architecture are so good and this colour combination of this art is quite great.The character of this art are also good.I like Japanese Art.

[k-dom]

I don't know if it has been translated but Japanese chronicles from Nicolas Bouvier is one of the best book I have read about Japanese culture. If you understand French read it in original version cause that's really good literature

[shinsengumi]

great topic

i want to share an art group which i discovered coincidentally eventho they do not make "traditional" japanese art but modern .
their concept is a mixture of "traditional japanese themes + graffiti/hip hop" . you should see their works and i know you'll love them , also very helpful to understand the phases of art tokyo people are into

RINPA ESHIDAN
ROOM

1 WEEK OF ART WORKS

GARDEN

PUZZLE

RINPA SAI

MINI GINZA LIVE CANVAS

[Asarii]

I'm so sorry I didn't catch this earlier, shinsengumi! m(＿　＿)m

I loved the videos you posted. Rinpa Eshidan reminds me of Art Attack a little bit how they utilize a large space as a canvas. Since the video's speed was fast-forwarded, I can't imagine how long it took to make each one. Nevertheless they managed to tell a story effectively through their painting so the time was worth it.

[Bugzee]

I don't know if it has been translated but Japanese chronicles from Nicolas Bouvier is one of the best book I have read about Japanese culture. If you understand French read it in original version cause that's really good literature

A friend of mine recommended me another book by Bouvier a while back called “The Way of The World”. I wasn’t aware of this “Japanese Chronicles” book; it certainly looks and sounds interesting. I’ll definitely pick it up very soon. Thanks for the info, k-dom!

great topic

i want to share an art group which i discovered coincidentally eventho they do not make "traditional" japanese art but modern .
their concept is a mixture of "traditional japanese themes + graffiti/hip hop" . you should see their works and i know you'll love them , also very helpful to understand the phases of art tokyo people are into

Those were some awesome clips, shinsen! I very much enjoyed watching them! The last one entitled “Mini Ginza” lol was my favourite! I would love to take part in such an activity in near the future! It would be so much fun!

I'm so sorry I didn't catch this earlier, shinsengumi! m(＿　＿)m

I loved the videos you posted. Rinpa Eshidan reminds me of Art Attack a little bit how they utilize a large space as a canvas. Since the video's speed was fast-forwarded, I can't imagine how long it took to make each one. Nevertheless they managed to tell a story effectively through their painting so the time was worth it.

Are you referring to the tv program? If so, then lol that use to be one of my favourite programs when I was a lil chibi haha. Towards the end of every show the presenter (Neil) would use a large surface (be it in the studio or even outside in the open) to create one massive art piece. I would follow the show and imitate some of them in my living room! Hahaha but obviously I would always run out of space! xD ...I agree with you, Asarii; the process reminds me in a way of Art Attack as well.

Moderator message by: Asarii

Yup, I was referring to the tv show. Both Neil and Rinpa Eshidan think BIG and create art that stands out.

------------------------------------------------------------------------

I shouldn’t have left this baby thread to wonder about on it’s own at such an early stage of it’s life lol so my bad. Anyway, here’s my contribution to this thread:

“We’ve all heard of urban art, but this is rural art. Art that takes place in farm fields of rice paddy’s in Japan. The Japanese Rice Paddy Art Festival is a fairly low-key art festival that has submissions from all over Japan to showcase a large crop of rice paddy designs.”

Sounds kinda weird, unusual and different! Wouldn’t you say so too?

It's the unusual and relatively unknown forms of art that occasionally stand out from the "typical" and popular kind...in this case; it's in the form of Rice Paddy Art!

Here's a few examples of the art form:

- Rice Paddy Wave
- Rice Paddy Artistry
- Rice Paddy Fighter

Another kind of art form that I've recently discovered is "Drainspotting". Now, this kind of art form has been around for quite a while now but I didn't realise the large amount of interest and popularity it has attracted over the years.

“Drainspotting” - In Japan, due care and attention is paid to every element of urban design and the humble manhole is no exception." Check out the full article here.

It’s suprisingly a good read and very cool. I wouldn’t expect so much work, effort and time to be used up for such objects in the first place but in a way that's the great thing about art! You can take advantage of any object and create something new and innovative from it. It may not necessarily have an essential purpose or function but the creative process is always the fun part!

Click here to see a video clip of the "Drainspotting" process. Ok, it's not the best video example but there are plenty more clips from around the world that show the complete process from the beginning to end of “Drainspotting”. It’s definitely worth taking a look at. Many of them are extremely detailed and none of them lack colours!!! They’re all vibrant and warm in appearance…and ironically in the end it’s for a drain cover/top or "manhole"! xD If you would like to see more examples, the Guardian website has a really cool mini gallery.

[k-dom]

“The Way of The World” is maybe his most famous book. He travels with a friend of him from ex-yougoslavya to india on a fiat topolino. That's a great book too, it shows you iran, afghanistan, pakistan on a better side than nowadays
His travels to Japan where later on

I'll have a look to your video thanks for sharing

[Bugzee]

I think it's an excellent read. The Japanese Chronicles is next on my list.

Your welcome.

[Miki Nomura 8]

good thread !!! i really liked it^^

[Bugzee]

Hey Miki Nomura 8! Welcome to MH! ^__^

I'm glad you like this thread. Do you like any particular form(s) of Japanese Art? o.O

[Iceiphoenix]

Awesome thread, Bugz!

I would just like to say that although traditional Japanese paintings and drawings probably have Chinese roots, I like how distinctly different they are.
My favourite piece of traditional Japanese art would be The Great Wave. I love the detail of the waves and the sea spray!

Also, another Japanese art form I like would be bonsai!

[Asarii]

Lately I've become really fond of kirie/切り絵. It's where you take a piece of paper (usually black) and carve out intricate images from it. As opposed to other art styles, the lines are already there so it's only the blank parts that need to be created. Kirie seems like ink on white paper at first glance so it's a really a testament to the artist's skills when you find out that the main tool used is a knife.

Examples from Google Images.

Here's a pixiv link with more than 30 000 examples of kirie. A lot of them are actually fan arts: http://www.pixiv.net/search.php?word=切り絵

[dark lord]

I have become fascinated by Japanese Martial Arts. I find it weird that there is not a single thread about it considering that the majority of manga artists base their stories on one of these. A great number of Manga incorporate Samurai Traditions and swordsmanship into the mix. Others include Karate, MMA and Ninpou like HSDK, Zippy Ziggy and Naruto.

Also, I would love to see some Japanese traditional architecture talks around. I just love those buildings. The Japanese landscape photography is also a great art to mention around here.