Is the Emperor of Japan mocking the West? When the Imperial family appears at events wearing formal Western wear, does this represent cultural appropriation? This question occurred to me while discussing the Kimono kerfuffle at the Boston Museum of Fine Arts. A second question would be why the change in dress? Did any country and […]
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Calligraphy and Photography
Calligraphy and photography share a common dilemma. Do they produce true art or merely crafts? That is, does their practice create real works of art, or are they simply well-crafted expressions with no deeper content than their surface beauty? Everyone writes, and thus everyone, intentionally or not, creates calligraphy. Today cameras are ubiquitous. Anyone and […]
Shodo & An Empty Mind
In 1985 I met Kobara Ranseki Sensei, an extraordinary master of Japanese calligraphy, with skill in ink painting as well. He was the founder of the Ranseki Sho Juku system of traditional calligraphic art and the co-founder of the Kokusai Shodo Bunka Koryu Kyokai, an international shodo association headquartered in the Tokyo area. Kobara Sensei […]
An Introduction to the Art of Etegami
In recent years, the popular Japanese art form known as etegami (e= image; tegami= letter) has captured the interest and imagination of artists all over the world. The simplest English definition of etegami may well be “Japanese postcard art.” But that phrase hardly does justice to the “the way” of etegami, and I’m happy to […]