Art of the Edo Period

The Edo period or Tokugawa period is the period between 1603 and 1868 in the history of Japan, when Japanese society was under the rule of the Tokugawa shogunate and the country's 300 regional Daimyo. The period was characterized by economic growth, strict social order, isolationist foreign policies, popular enjoyment of arts and culture, and sustainable forest management. The shogunate was officially established in Edo on March 24, 1603, by Tokugawa Ieyasu. The period came to an end with the Meiji Restoration on May 3, 1868, after the fall of Edo.
The Tokugawa (or Edo) period brought 250 years of stability to Japan. The political system evolved into what historians callbakuhan, a combination of the terms bakufu and han (domains) to describe the government and society of the period.^[1] In the bakuhan, the shogun had national authority and the daimyo had regional authority. This represented a new unity in the feudal structure, which featured an increasingly large bureaucracy to administer the mixture of centralized and decentralized authorities. The Tokugawa became more powerful during their first century of rule: land redistribution gave them nearly seven million koku, control of the most important cities, and a land assessment system reaping great revenues.

During the period, Japan progressively studied Western sciences and techniques (called rangaku, "Dutch studies") through the information and books received through the Dutch traders in Dejima. The main areas that were studied included geography, medicine, natural sciences, astronomy, art, languages, physical sciences such as the study of electrical phenomena, and mechanical sciences as exemplified by the development of Japanese clockwatches, or wadokei, inspired by Western techniques.

The flourishing of Neo-Confucianism was the major intellectual development of the Tokugawa period. Confucian studies had long been kept active in Japan by Buddhist clerics, but during the Tokugawa period, Confucianism emerged from Buddhist religious control. This system of thought increased attention to a secular view of man and society. The ethical humanism, rationalism, and historical perspective of neo-Confucian doctrine appealed to the official class. By the mid-17th century, neo-Confucianism was Japan's dominant legal philosophy and contributed directly to the development of the kokugaku (national learning) school of thought.

For the first time, urban populations had the means and leisure time to support a new mass culture. Their search for enjoyment became known as ukiyo (the floating world), an ideal world of fashion, popular entertainment, and the discovery of aesthetic qualities in objects and actions of everyday life, including sex (shunga). This increasing interest in pursuing recreational activities helped to develop an array of new industries, many of which could be found in an area known as Yoshiwara. The region was better known for being the center of Edo’s developing sense of elegance and refinement. This place of pleasure and luxury became a destination for the elite and wealthy merchants who wished to flaunt their fortune.^[10] Their economy relied primarily on the patronage of such individuals in order to sustain itself. For many of those who inhabited and worked in this region maintaining the illusion of grandeur was the only way of supporting their business.

Professional female entertainers (geisha), music, popular stories, Kabuki and bunraku (puppet theater), poetry, a rich literature, and art, exemplified by beautiful woodblock prints (known as ukiyo-e), were all part of this flowering of culture. Literature also flourished with the talented examples of the playwright Chikamatsu Monzaemon (1653–1724) and the poet, essayist, and travel writer Matsuo Bashō (1644–94).

Here there are some art products from the Edo Period:

Two Mukozuke Dishes

Saga and Nagasaki Prefectures

Momoyama to Edo period, late 16th-early 17th century

Stoneware painted with underglaze iron brown (Karatsu ware)

Storage Jar

Saga Prefecture

Edo period, c. 1670-1690

Porcelain painted with underglaze cobalt blue (Arita ware, Kakiemon style)

Octagonal Jar

Saga Prefecture

Edo period, 18th century

Porcelain painted with underglaze cobalt blue and overglaze enamels, with traces of gold (Arita ware, Imari style

 )

Bowl
Saga Prefecture
Edo period, c. 1670-1690
Porcelain painted with overglaze enamels, with traces of gold (Arita ware, Kakiemon style); 18th-century gilt bronze mounts

Poem Scroll 

Calligraphy by Hon'ami Koetsu (1558-1637) 

Painting by a follower of Tawaraya Sotatsu

Poem Scroll with Selections from the Anthology of Chinese and Japanese Poems for Recitation (Wakan roei shu)

Edo period, dated 1626

Handscroll; ink and gold on silk

Sotatsu School Screens

Attributed to Sotatsu School

Flowers and Grasses of the Four Seasons

Edo period, c. 1620-1650

Pair of six-panel folding screens; color and ink on gold leaf on paper

Mr. and Mrs. John D. Rockefeller 3rd Acquisition Fund

Toshusai Sharaku (active 1794-1795)

Nakamura Konozo as the Boatman Kanagawaya no Gon and Nakajima Wadaemon as "Dried Codfish" Chozaemon

Edo period, 1794-1795

Woodblock print; ink, color, and mica on paper

Water Jar for Tea Ceremony

Mie Prefecture

Momoyama to Edo period, late 16th-early 17th century

Stoneware with impressed design under glaze (Iga ware)

Nabeshima Dish

Saga Prefecture

Edo period, 17th century

Porcelain painted with underglaze cobalt blue with iron-brown and green glazes (Arita ware, Nabeshima type)

Kutani Dish

Shallow Bowl

Saga Prefecture

Edo period, late 17th-early 18th century

Porcelain painted with overglaze enamels (Arita ware, Kutani style)

Ninsei Jar

Nonomura Ninsei (about 1574-1660/66)

Tea Leaf Jar

Kyoto Prefecture

Edo period, mid-17th century

Stoneware painted with overglaze enamels and silver (Kyoto ware)

Kenzan Bowl

Ogata Kenzan (1663-1743)

Bowl with Reticulated Rim

Kyoto Prefecture

Edo period, early 18th century

Stoneware with pierced design and painted with slips under glaze and overglaze enamels and gold (Kyoto ware)

A Three-Tiered Jubako [Food Containter] Edo Period (17th century) Decorated in gold and silver hiramaki-e, takamaki-e and nashiji on a black ground, the top with a pagoda in a rocky moonlit landscape

Case (Inrō) with Design of Flowering Hagi beside a Brushwood Fence Date: 17th–18th century

Antique Japanese Lacquer Inro and Ivory Netsuke, 1750~1850