This catalogue presents masterpieces of calligraphy, painting, sculpture, ceramics, lacquers, and textiles from two of America’s greatest Japanese art collections, which are featured in a landmark exhibition at the Asia Society in New York, from February to April, 2020. Impermanence is a pervasive subject in Japanese philosophy and art, and recognising the role of ephemerality is key to appreciating much of Japan’s artistic production. The dazzling range of art and objects in this beautifully photographed exhibition catalogue show the broad, yet nuanced, ways that the notion of the ephemeral manifests itself in the arts of Japan throughout history. Insightful contributions from noted scholars explore the aesthetics of impermanence in religion, literature, artefacts, the tea ceremony, and popular culture in objects dating from the late Jomon period (ca. 1000-300 B.C.E.) to the 20th century. Published to accompany an exhibition at the Asia Society Museum, New York, between 11 February and 26 April 2020. AUTHOR: Adriana Proser is John H. Foster Senior Curator for Traditional Asian Art at Asia Society. Over the last 15 years, she has organised and co-organised more than 40 exhibitions featuring diverse works from all over Asia. At Asia Society, Dr. Proser has served as Asia Society’s in-house and co-curator for such exhibitions as Designed for Pleasure: The World of Edo Japan in Prints and Paintings, 1680-1860, Buddhist Arts of Myanmar, and Kamakura: Realism and Spirituality in the Sculpture of Japan.
SELLING POINTS: . A thematic exhibition that explores different facets of the notion of impermanence in Japanese art, the tea ceremony, and Buddhism . Features work from the permanent collection of Asia Society (the Rockefeller Collection) and one of the main private collections of Japanese art in the United States (the John C. Weber Collection) . Features many previously unseen artworks 106 colour, 1 b/w images