A guardian king, Heian period (794–1185), approx. 900–1000. Japan. Wood. The Avery Brundage Collection, B67S1.
A True Picture of the Steamship Powhatan; A Ship Generally Called a Steam Frigate..., from the Black Ship Scroll, Edo period (1615-1868); approx. 1854. Japan. Handscroll segment mounted as a hanging scroll; ink and colors on paper. Museum purchase with assistance from the Japan Society of Northern California, 2012.60.2.
Prior to the Edo period (1615–1868), many painters and sculptors remained anonymous, occupying relatively equal status to carpenters and other artisans. The position of the artist during the Edo period changed, as artists became more successful financially, and better educated. Some of them began to be seen as celebrities, arbiters of taste with eccentric personalities. Although many still worked for low wages in obscurity, the Edo period marks the emergence of the artist as individual, as the genius creator in Japan. Learn more.
In this lecture series, Mary-Ann Milford of Mills College and Lewis Lancaster of UC Berkeley discuss the arts of Japan.
Learn more about the arts of Korea and Japan through lectures by renowned scholars.
Asian Art Museum Storyteller, Leta Bushyhead, tells a new year story about Jizo, a deity whose statues are a common sight throughout Japan, especially by roadsides. Traditionally, he is seen as the guardian of children.
To teach a responsibility for self-advocacy while celebrating diversity, students will generate ideas about what will make their lives better, will create placards based on their ideas, and share their ideas in a "protest" march.
Dog chasing (inuoumono), approx. 1640. Japan. Early Edo period (1615–1868). Pair of six-panel screens; ink, colors, and gold on paper. The Avery Brundage Collection, B60D1 and B60D2.
View vocabulary related to the Edo period (1615-1868) in Japan.
Tea played an important role in the shaping of culture in the Edo period (1615-1868). Learn more.
In this lesson students will be introduced to the Japanese tradition of Chanoyu (referred to by practitioners as “tea gathering”).
Herons and reeds, attributed to Yamamoto Baiitsu (1783-1856). Japan; Edo Period (1615-1868). Hanging Scroll; ink and colors on paper. The Avery Brundage Collection, B65D14.
Japan’s Edo period dates from 1615, when Tokugawa Ieyasu defeated his enemies at Osaka Castle, to 1868, when the Shogun’s government collapsed and the Meiji emperor was reinstated as Japan’s main figurehead. This 250-year period takes its name from the city of Edo that started out as a small castle town and grew into one of the largest cities of the modern world, now called Tokyo. Learn more.
Learn vocabulary related to the Japanese tea ceremony.
Hear Asian Art Museum Art Speak interns discuss the Japanese teahouse at the museum.
Noh robe with design of butterflies, pampas grass, and clouds, 1800–1868. Japan. Edo period (1615–1868). Silk with gold. Asian Art Museum, 2003.10.
Learn about the origins of the samurai (lit. “one who serves”).
Compare the famous excerpt of the Battle at Yashima (1185) from The Tale of the Heike with the painting of the Battles at Ichi-no-tani and Yashima, from The Tale of the Heike to analyze how artists and writers have portrayed the life and experiences of a samurai warrior.
One of the most reliable sources of information about warriors in Japan is the body of war tales, stories chronicling the lives of warriors and their battles, written from the 900s to the 1600s. Learn more.
This selection of resources explores the history and stories of Japan's warrior class. Materials support the Samurai: Real and Imagined school program at the Asian Art Museum.
Seated Buddha Amitabha (Japanese: Amida). Japan. Heian period (794–1185). Lacquer and gold on wood. The Avery Brundage Collection, B60S10+.
An introduction to Shinto, one of Japan's earliest belief systems.
Tea bowl with dragon roundels, 1615–1700. By Nonomura Ninsei (1625–1675). Stoneware with polychrome enamel decoration. Gift of the Connoisseurs' Council and Bruce and Betty Alberts, 1991.230.
Learn about the evolution of ukiyo-e and woodblock prints in Japan.
Asian Art Museum Storyteller, Jeff Byers, tells a Japanese story about a magical raccoon-dog, or tanuki, who uses its shape shifting powers to reward its rescuer for his kindness.
Abbreviated Map of All the World's Nations, approx. 1800-1850. Japan. Woodblock print; ink on paper. Gift to honor the Reverend Hodo Tobase, 2010.452.
America: Depiction of an American Ship and Portraits of the First Ambassador Perry and the Deputy Ambassador Adams, by, Shinsei (Japanese, 1850's), 1854. Ink and colors on paper. Bequest of Marshall Dill, F2001.23.1.
Explore Nara's ancient Buddhist art and architecture.
Explore images and stories of animals from across Asia. This selection of resources support the Animal Tales storytelling school program at the Asian Art Museum.
Arrival of a Portuguese ship, one of a pair (Nanban screens), Six panel folding screen, 1620-1640. Japan. Ink, colors, and gold on paper, The Avery Brundage Collection, B60D77+.
The Islamic world is and always has been more diverse and complex than most outsiders have thought...
This lecture series examines the origins of traditions and how traditions are renewed, appropriated, and transformed over time.
Introduce your students to the life and teachings of the Buddha and trace the spread of Buddhism through Asia.
Buddhist bell, by Tachibana Kyubei, 1532. Japan. Bronze. Transfer from the Fine Arts Museum of San Francisco. Gift of William Goodman, B84B2.
When we consider acquiring an object for the Asian Art Museum’s collection, our first step is to focus a trained eye on it...
Edo had a distinct consumer society born of the necessity to support the immense numbers of military living there. Learn more.
Fish Market at Nihon Bridge (Nihonbashi uoichi) from Famous Places in the Eastern Capital (Toto meisho), by Ando Hiroshige (Japanese, 1797–1858). 1615–1868. Woodblock print; ink and watercolor on paper. Bequest of Frances Estelle Booth Page, 1999.26.
Asian Art Museum storyteller, Liz Nichols, tells a Japanese story about a boy who was only one inch tall in the museum's Japan galleries.
Christoffer Bovbjerg, PhD Candidate at UC Berkeley, gives an overview of Japanese history using objects from the Asian Art Museum's collection at the Japan Teacher Institute at the Asian Art Museum in partnership with the University of California at Berkeley History–Social Science Project.
Kamishibai (kami-paper, shibai-play) is a popular Japanese storytelling art form that combines oral and visual narration. Learn more.
Performed on a simple stage Kyogen (literally “wild speech”) that first developed in the 1300s.
Landscape with Yueyang Pavilion (1802), by Aoki Shukuya (died 1802). Japan; Edo period (1615-1868). Two panel folding screen; Ink and colors on gold. Gift and Purchase from the Harry G.C. Packard Collection Charitable Trust in honor of Dr. Shujiro Shimada; The Avery Brundage Collection, 1991.69.
View talks and short videos related to the Lords of the Samurai exhibition on topics ranging from poetry to swords.
Make your own three dimensional Japanese teahouse model.
Matchlock pistol (bajozutsu). Japan. Edo period (1615–1868). Iron, wood, lacquer, gold, and silver. Gift of Dr. and Mrs. William Wedemyer, 2004.39.
Peach-shaped helmet (kabuto) with rabbit crest and face guard (menpo), Edo period (1615-1868); approx. 1615–1800. Japan. Iron, lacquer, horsehair, braided silk. Gift of The Campbell Family, 2011.45.1.2.
Suit of armor. Japan. Edo period (1615–1868). Black lacquered iron plates, leather, textile, and silk cord. Gift of Mr. R.P. Schwerin, B74M7.
Scenes from The Tale of Genji, one of a pair (1615–1868). Japan. Six panel folding screen; Ink, colors and gold on paper. The Avery Brundage Collection, B60D46+.
Short sword (wakizashi) and Long sword (katana) with blade mountings. Japan. Muromachi period (1333–1573). Forged and tempered steel, sharkskin, black lacquer, gold on bronze. The Avery Brundage Collection, B64W7 and B64W8.
Splashed Ink Landscape. By Soga Sojo (active 1490–approx.1512). Japan. Hanging scroll. Ink on paper. Gift and purchase from the Harry G. C. Packard Collection Charitable Trust in honor of Dr. Shujiro Shimada, 1991.63.
Tea bowl with standing crane design (gohon tachizuru), approx. 1603. Japan. Glazed stoneware with iron and slip inlay. The Avery Brundage Collection, B72P17.
Tea bowl with the poetic name Summer Festival Music. Attributed to Raku Sonyu (fifth-generation Raku family; 1664–1716). Japan; Kyoto. Raku ware, glazed earthenware. Asian Art Museum, Gift of William S. Picher, B76P5.
Sen Soshitsu is the fifteenth generation head of the Urasenke tradition which provides instruction in the “Way of Tea” (Chado; also known as Chanoyu, literally “hot water for tea”). He has written that this practice, though often called the “tea ceremony," is not really a ceremony or ritual at all, but a way of life based on the simple act of serving tea with a pure heart. Learn more.
A short documentary on the Japanese tearoom at the Asian Art Museum.
Professor Karen Wigen of Stanford University, gives a talk to teachers on the Japanese archipelago at the Japan Teacher Institute at Asian Art Museum in partnership with the University of California at Berkeley History–Social Science Project.
Hailing from the sword techniques of Japanese samurai, iaido (ee-ay-doe) is a martial art from battle and warfare preserved for 450 years. Learn more.
Traveling chest, 1800–1868. Japan. Edo period (1615–1868). Lacquer and gold on wood; metal fittings, locks, and handles. Gift of Norma C. and Jack D. Tomlinson, 1991.127.
