Japanese screen or Boebou ( Japanese 屏風 boe: boo , wall from the wind) - a small portable partition made of several panels using painting and calligraphy , designed to separate part of the room and organize the interior . Painting on screens has become very widespread in Japan and plays a significant role in the history of Japanese art [1] .
Content
Features of the manufacture and painting of the Japanese screen
Like many household items and art forms of Japan , Japanese screens are rooted in China ; screen prototypes date from the reign of the Han Empire . The word bebu literally means "protection from the wind", due to which we can assume that the original purpose of the screens. They stood in front of the doors, protecting the house from evil spirits [1] . The first screens appeared in the VIII century, when Japanese masters began to make their own works based on Chinese designs [1] [2] .
Double-wing screens were made in Japan; screens of six and eight wings were also found. The height of Japanese screens is usually about 150-160 cm, and the length can go up to 360 cm. To make the screen, durable gampi paper was used, as well as gilded paper and silk. The masters painted on separate sheets, then the sheets were fastened on the inner and outer frames [1] . Panels of Japanese screens tightly adjoin each other in the expanded form, so the master could create a single picture on the entire area of the screen [1] . Many painters took into account the dynamics of folding the screen and used folds to create composition and perspective (for example, " Pine Forest ", Hasegawa Tohaku ) [1] .
Screen Functions
Screens in Japan have been and are currently being used in various aspects of home décor. Folding panels could set aside a place for solitary reading or writing, a personal meeting, sleeping, as well as a tea ceremony or rituals [2] . In the past, the screen served as an indicator of the wealth and power of its owner [2] .
History
In the Nara period (646–794), the origin of the original Japanese screen, their appearance. The first screens in Japan were at the court of the emperor and served for important ceremonies. Most often there were six-winged screens; panels were painted on silk; the panels were fastened with silk threads.
During the Heian period (794–1185), screens became part of the interior of daimyo houses, as well as Buddhist and Shinto shrines . On temple screens you can often find the image of a hermit poet or sages [1] . Zenigata ( 銭 形 п ) , metal parts of a round shape, began to be used to fasten screen panels. At the end of the 9th century, Japanese stories began to appear on the screens. This is due to the development of the Shinden Zukuri style in architecture [1] . It was in the Heian era in Japan that the concept of an emotional attitude to things, including screens, the desire to see beauty and charm ( avare ) in things, which was reflected in art in the following centuries, developed [1] .
During the Muromachi period (1392–1568), screens appeared in many houses, shops, and dojos . Most often, bivalve screens were found. Instead of zenigata, paper loops began to be used for scrap. Thus, the mass of the screen was significantly reduced. Also, this technology allowed us to abandon the vertical wooden inserts on the bends, and artists could create a single picture on the entire surface of the screen. Suiboku landscapes were one of the first on the screens to be done by Shubun [1] . In Kyoto , a special genre of screen painting was born with panoramic views of the city and its suburbs Rakutu rakugai [3] .
The Azuti-Momoyama period (1568–1600) and the beginning of the Edo period (1600–1868) are characterized by the growing popularity of screens; they began to appear in the dwellings of the samurai , becoming a symbol of their strength and wealth. In the process of manufacturing screens and mural subjects, some changes have occurred. Due to the fact that the screen began to carry a symbol of wealth, the painting was often done on a golden background with bright colors, among the plots there were paintings from everyday life (among which are Tagasode ), as well as epic scenes, landscapes with four seasons, animals and plants [2] . The pioneers in this were representatives of the Kano school and master Kano Aitoku [2] . Since the XVI century, screens began to appear in the homes of ordinary citizens [1] .
In the XIX century, in connection with the emergence and popularity of Japaneseism, Japanese screens began to be imported into Europe. French artist Odilon Redon created a series of panels inspired by Japanese bebos [4] . Currently, the manufacturing process of screens is often automated; some families who pass their craft from generation to generation continue the tradition of hand-made bebou.
Screen Artists
- Shubun (1414-1463)
- Sessu (1420-1506)
- Kano Aitoku (1543-1590)
- Tavaraya Sotatsu (1600-1643)
- Ogata Korin (1658-1716)
- Sakai Choitsu (1761-1828)
- Suzuki Kiitsu (1796-1858)
- Kamisaka Sekka (1866-1942)
Notes
- ↑ 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 Nikolaev, N.S. A screen is a thing and a picture . - M.: East. lit .. - P. 169-184.
- ↑ 1 2 3 4 5 Traditional folding screens (byobu ) . Corfu Museum of Asian Art.
- ↑ Murase, Miyeko. Japanese Art: Selections from the Mary and Jackson Burke Collection: [exhibition ]: [ eng. ] / Miyeko Murase, Metropolitan Museum of Art (New York NY. - Metropolitan Museum of Art, 1975-01-01. - P. 154-153. - ISBN 9780870991363 .
- ↑ Musée d'Orsay: non_traduit (French) . www.musee-orsay.fr .