The Idea of America in 19th-century Japanese prints is explored in this exhibition from the Art Institute of Chicago. The selection of Yokohama prints featured in this exhibition emerged from the specific historical events initiated when a fleet commandeered by US… Continue reading
The Cuyahoga River in Cleveland, Ohio is its ‘main industrial artery’ and has been critical to the city’s development following its founding in 1796. Cleveland’s rapid industrialisation in the mid-19th century, which led to much prosperity and wealth, was largely… Continue reading
This Washington DC exhibition is the first devoted to the subject of animals in Japanese art, real or imaginary, in the US with works spanning the 5th century to the present day. It’s a large exhibition, with over 300 works… Continue reading
Spirit houses are small ornate shrines that offer protection and shelter for a residences’ spirits who in return, watch over and project apartments and houses and often, open spaces. They are common throughout Southeast Asia. Many contain tiny carved deities,… Continue reading
Manga – often translated as ‘pictures run riot’ – are serialised Japanese stories, told through a combination of images and text. With an avid readership in Japan and beyond, manga has evolved into a multi-billion-pound industry. Its distinctive style of… Continue reading
Shinto, The Way of the Gods, is Japan’s ancient belief system focused on the veneration of divine phenomena, or spirits, called kami – nature divinities of the land, sky, and waters. The essence of Shinto lies in the worship of… Continue reading
The Islamic religion was born in the Arabian Peninsula when it was virtual a desert, where water was greatly valued from the earliest of times. Water, known as ‘ma’ in Arabic, is probably the single vital resource that has been… Continue reading
The concurrent exhibition, Passion for Form (from the MacLean Collection) blends seamlessly with Southeast Asian Ceramics from the Collection of James E Breece, III, because of their two different approaches to the early arts of Southeast Asia. The Passion exhibition… Continue reading
The Taiwanese artist Au Ho-nien is one of the present third-generation masters of the Lingnan (South of the Mountains) School of painting which originated in the Guangdong area of southern China at the end of the 19th century. Lingnan is… Continue reading
Asian Art Newspaper takes a look at the carpets and artefacts on display at the Azerbaijan Carpet Museum in Baku. This specialised museum in Baku was first established in 1967 as the Azerbaijan State Museum of Carpet and Applied Art… Continue reading