THE ART OF EARLY JAPAN

Adison Lemmon

Japan before the spread of Buddhism; The Jomon Period

The Jomon (cord markings) period lasted from 10,500-300 B.C.E

Jomon people were hunter-gatherers, but were settlers, not nomadic.

Villages were consisted of pit dwellings. Cord markings is the technique they used for decorating

earthenware. Local variations of ceramic artwork flourished in the

Middle Jomon period (2500-1500 B.C.E) Jomon pottery has a striking resemblance to that of

Chinese earthenware

Cord Marking Pottery

Shrines and Temples; Early Buddhism

Ise Grand Shrine is located in Ise, Japan. This shrine is dedicate to Amaterasu, Japan’s sun goddess. It is made up of two different shrines, Geku and Naiku. Naiku is the inner shrine and is dedicated to worship the sun goddess

Amaterasu. Geku is dedicated to the deity of agriculture and industry, Toyouke no omikami.

Most of the temples built in Kyoto were destroyed during the Onin wars(1467-1477) and rebuilt.

Shinto is the native religion of Japan. Its main practice was the worship of clan deities and local deities inhabiting mountains, rivers, and other natural features.

Shinto shrines are built in beautiful, natural settings. The buildings themselves are rarely very impressive and the grounds feature large expanses of gravel.

Kyoto was the center of power for almost a thousand years, then power shifted into Edo, now present-day Tokyo.

Temples and shrines are normally made of wood.

Shrines & Temples

Japanese Paintings and Styles

Most of Japanese paintings would be found in scrolls. They would be painted over paper and be made out of ink and

color. The Legends of Mount Shigi was painted during the late 12th

century. It tells of miraculous events involving virtuous individuals.

It presented several scenes in a long, unbroken format. An example of this would be travelers at different points of their journey through the same landscape.

The Genji scrolls are different. They were written around the Nara and Heian periods. They told stories of prince Genji and his descendants. They were written by Murasaki Shikubu.

Not one person would paint and write these scrolls alone, it would require a team. This team would consist of a nobleman talented in calligraphy, a chief painter, and assistances.

Scroll Paintings