A History of Japanese Art

by Noritake Tsuda

  Fig. 33. Amida Triad with Two Disciples (N.T.)

  Imperial Household Collection

  Fig. 34. Eleven-headed Kwannon (N.T.)

  Nara Imperial Household Museum

  The erection of the famous Daibutsu, measuring about 16 meters in height, was indeed a wonder in the art of casting bronze, and an epoch-making event in the history of Japanese Buddhism. But it has suffered great repairs several times, so that it is now difficult to see its original magnificence.

  4. WOOD SCULPTURE

  The wooden sculpture of the Tempyō Era was usually made of hinoki (a kind of white cedar) and, rarely, of camphor wood. It was generally carved out of one block of wood, as in the Suiko Period, and often included the pedestal, which was shaped into a lotus cup. When the carving was finished, the whole surface was thinly coated with gesso or gofun;then all the details were painted in various colors.

  However these colors are now nearly all gone from any relics of Tempyō sculpture; they retain only some traces of gesso, although the plain wood finish thus disclosed shows excellent workmanship.

  A beautiful example of the Tempyō wooden sculpture will be seen in the statue of the Eleven-headed Kwannon (Fig. 34) of Yakushi-ji monastery, now placed on view in the Nara Imperial Household Museum. It is a standing figure of graceful posture, measuring 190 centimeters in height. It holds a vase in the left hand at the side of the chest and the right arm is calmly suspended along the side. The well-built body with sensuous beauty and the fluent lines of drapery represent the characteristic feature of the Tempyō sculpture. Its sensuous gracefulness expresses spiritual magnitude.

  Other fine examples of wooden sculpture from the Tempyō Era can be seen at the Shinyakushi-ji at Nara and Toshōdai-ji monastery in the suburb of Nara and also at the Nara Imperial Household Museum.

  Fig. 35. Furuna, a Disciple of Buddha (N.T.)

  Nara Imperial Household Museum

  5. DRY-LACQUER SCULPTURE

  In the eighth century, the use of bronze and wood in sculpture declined and the new materials, clay and dry-lacquer, began to be used in their places. Indeed, the highest development of Tempyō sculpture was attained by using clay and dry-lacquer, asnd many masterpieces remain in good condition. The use of dry-lacquer or kanshitsu is a process of Chinese origin. In the manufacture of dry-lacquer statues, different methods were used. By one method, a wooden or clay model was made first as for casting, and then a thick coating of clay was applied, the whole, when dried, being cut off into several parts to obtain convex moulds. The hollow surfaces were coated with mica; and lacquer juice—first of finer consistency and next of coarser quality— was gradually poured into these moulds. All the parts of a statue thus made were joined together by sewing with thread; then the design, as a finish, was lacquered on the surface, and finally painted as required. In another method, a skeleton of wood was covered with pieces of coarse cloth soaked in lacquer juice which could be made to harden into the primary blocking of the statue and then all the details were modeled on the surface in the wet material, quite as in the manner of modeling clay. However, the most practical of all the methods was the so-called "hollow statue" process, in which a model of clay was made and covered with lacquered cloth. When both clay and lacquer had hardened, the inside of the figure was dug out, leaving a hard shell, which would not warp nor split. On the surface thus obtained were elaborated all the details of the statue by lacquer mixed with "makko" or powdered incense wood. The hollow inside was then supported with a wooden frame to give it more stability.

  The main Buddhist statue, Fukū-kensaku-kwannon, of the Hokke-dō chapel (Sangatsu-dō) at Nara, is an example of the dry lacquer statue of the Chinese T'ang Period as modified by its assimilation in Japan.

  In Fig. 35 we have reproduced the figure of Furuna, one of the ten great disciples of Buddha Shaka-muni. This is an excellent example produced in the eighth century in Japan. It measures about 150 centimeters in height. The spirituality of the great disciple is symbolized cleverly by making him slender. The face is especially wonderful for the meditative mood which is seen in the slightly knitted brow, as well as for the refined expression of lovingkindness that is moving in his heart. Thus is symbolized his individual personality. A number of other fine examples of masterpieces in dry-lacquer will be found in the Nara Imperial Household Museum and in the tōshōdai-ji monastery near Nara.

  Fig. 36. Clay Statue of Gakkwō (N.T.)

  Hokke-Jō, Nara

  6. CLAY SCULPTURE

  Clay was even more popular with the sculptors of the eighth century than dry-lacquer, and the plastic genius of these artists is shown by many excellent examples which remain in good condition today in spite of the fact that the images were never hardened by fire. In the manufacture of clay figures, a wooden frame was made first, and then the frame bones were bound with straw cord. Next, the clay, mixed with straw fiber, was shaped into the outline of a figure, and then all the surface work was elaborated with a finer finish clay. The finish clay was composed of fine sifted Nara earth mixed with finely shredded paper fiber and particles of mica. It is of a beautiful light silvery-gray The clay was applied little by little with the fingers so that it might dry easily. It takes a polished surface that hardens with mere drying, and resists ordinary atmospheric disintegration.

  The earliest Japanese example of Buddhist clay figures that have come down to us are the small figures which were made in 711 and are installed in the five-storied stupa of the Hōryū-ji monastery, as is recorded in the history of the temple.

  The clay and dry-lacquer statues of the Tempyō Era are represented at their best in the Hokke-dō chapel at Nara. On either side of the main figure in the chapel stands a clay figure. One of the two, the image of Gakkwo, is particularly fine, surpassing all the rest in the chapel. (Fig. 36) It measures 2.6 meters in height, and stands calmly with hands clasped in prayer. That the technique of clay-modeling had reached a stage of almost superhuman perfection will be seen in its well-rounded and quiet attitude, which expresses inner spirituality. The refined dignity of the divine face, which is miraculously combined with human beauty, cannot be surpassed by any other statue. The deeply modeled drapery folds seem as fine as the best of archaic Greek.

  A number of examples of masterpieces in clay will be found in the Nara Imperial Household Museum, and in the Hokke-dō, and the Kaidan-in of the Tōdai-ji monastery at Nara.

  7. TEXTILE ART

  The Japanese people in the eighth century produced magnificent industrial arts which were harmonious with their highly artistic Buddhist images. The faithful could appreciate the arts in the monasteries with all their hearts and souls and could get near to the true meaning of beauty which cannot be touched with the hands nor possessed by legal rights. The decorative arts used in the Buddhist services were of the highest kind produced in that age. They must have enriched the imagination of the people and given them expectation for their lives, both in the present and in the future. In the early Nara Period, all the painters, weavers, smiths, casters, potters, and lacquerers were appointed under Imperial patronage. The decorative designs composed by them were generally continental in style; and most highly developed in the reign of the Emperor Shōmu (724-748). A large number of good examples produced by them are preserved in the Shōsō-in treasury, the wooden storehouse built in the same age at Nara.

  Of these extant examples of the industrial art from the Nara Period, textile fabrics, metal work, and musical instruments are most notable and worthy of special attention.

  The development of textile art in the eighth century was greatly influenced by the Chinese. It was, however, deeply indebted to the foundation made in the preceding periods. It had begun already in our prehistoric age, as was the case with that of other primitive peoples. In the art of weaving, the principal materials used first were fibers of hemp and other plants; and from very early times men had a knowledge of raising silkworms. The Emperor Yūryaku (457-479) had encouraged the industry of sericulture, and in 655, in the
reign of the Emperor Kōtoku, a bureau of weaving, the Oribeno-tsukasa, was established. In 711, in the reign of the Empress Gemmyō, textile experts called ayashi were sent from the bureau of weaving to twenty-one different provinces throughout the country in order to propagate the advanced art of weaving twill (aya) and brocade, and it was enacted that these twenty-one provinces were to send in textile fabrics for corvée and annual tribute. Undoubtedly this regulation gave a great impetus to the silk industry. In addition to these historical records, the collection of textile fabrics in the Shōsō-in and the Tokyo Imperial Household Museum, show most eloquently how prosperous the art was. They include a marvellous variety of products. Among them are brocade (nishiki), twill (aya), gauze (ra), silk (kinu), rough silk (ashiginu), etc. Indeed they are extremely important materials in the history of Oriental textiles.

  Speaking of ornament, it is interesting to note that some of the designs were developed from the same source as were those silk fabrics discovered in Persia and Antinoe in Northern Egypt, which were produced in the corresponding period, that is, from the sixth to the eighth centuries. In the sixth century, the Emperor Justinian imported the Oriental method of silk industry to Byzantium and made Constantinople the center of silk supply for Europe. Meanwhile, in Chang-an, the capital of the T'ang Dynasty of China, every kind of beautiful silk developed in Western Asia became known. From China, Japan learned the new development of textile fabrics, and the best technical perfection. This fact shows how people in the West and the East loved the beauty of decorative silk as we do today, and we see that beautiful and good things find their way everywhere.

  As to the technical process of brocade weaving, there were two distinctly different methods. In one process the design and ground were woven so as to stand out with warp thread only, and the woof did not show at all on the front surface of the brocade. This process seems to have been the earlier method. The other process is the style in which the designs are with the woof, similar to the modern brocade weave. This process seems to have been developed later; it survives in two different kinds of brocade produced by it. One is similar to tapestry weave (tsuzure-nishiki) and the other to ordinary Japanese weave (yamato-nishiki). The designs in the ordinary brocade weave are mostly plain and distinct with vivid colors, while the designs shown by warp thread only are less sharply defined and their character is free and less rigid.

  Aya (twill) in most cases is covered all over with twill, or the design only is in twills, and the twills in the design run counter to those on the ground so that the design stands out in any light. The designs used for aya, broadly speaking, are similar to those on brocade, but for practical use they are generally smaller and often form the ground pattern. The dye used is generally weak and quiet in tone.

  There are two distinct names given for silk; one is kinu, which is finer and better silk, and the other ashiginu, which is coarser in quality. The plain silks were, of course, for practical use and were produced abundantly; and some were dyed in plain colors or with designs in batik.

  Fig. 37. Rōkechi

  Shōsō-in Collection

  Ra is a kind of gauze and is also called usumono. Whenever it was required to have a ground pattern, a special loom was used so that it invariably produced a lozenge pattern. Accordingly, the patterns of ra in the Shōsō-in collection consisted of small lozenges, double or multifold lozenges, four small lozenges forming a larger one, or "pine-bark" lozenge. The fabrics so figured were dyed and sometimes decorated further with embroidery.

  Dye-stuff used in the dyeing was obtained principally from vegetables, employing wood ash, vinegar, etc. as mordants. A marked development was made in the use of colors; in an old document kept in the Shōsō-in, as many as seventeen different kinds are mentioned. But the principal colors used in the textile fabrics were red, blue, yellow, purple, black, and dark brown; and all these colors are wonderfully well preserved, resisting prolonged action of sunlight.

  Red included crimson, scarlet, and sapan (suhō). The safflower was used for crimson; madder (akane) as a material for scarlet. Suhō was obtained by boiling sapan-wood in water.

  Blue included clear blue (heki), dark blue (kon), and light blue (hanada); and green was derived from blue. The principal material for them was poligonum tinctrium (ai). For clear blue and green, Miscanthus tinctorium (kariyasu) or Phellodendron amurense (kiwada) was required.

  Yellow was derived from Golden florida (kuchinashi), kariyasu, kiwada, etc.

  Purple was obtained from shiso (Lythosperm erythrorzon); and black was taken from tsurubami (a fruit of the wood nut Corylus heterophylla) and mud.

  The principal methods of dyeing were rōkechi, kyōkechi, and kōkechi. In the method called rōkechi (batik), the design is first put on with wax and the pattern is obtained by removing the wax afterwards. The peculiarity of this style of dyeing is in the interesting markings in the design produced by natural cracks in the wax put on the silk, which take the dye, giving a touch of elegance. (Fig. 37) In the method kyōkechi the silk is clamped between two boards on which is a pierced design through which the dye is applied. (Fig. 38) When a symmetrical design is required, the silk is folded double; when four symmetrical patterns are wanted, it is quadrupled; and, when the silk is required to have the same pattern scattered over it, it is folded as many times as required, clasped between boards tightly, and dyed. One peculiarity of the products of this style is the blurred effect along the edge of the design, giving a touch of neatness. Kōkechi (tie-dyeing) is the method in which the silk is tied tightly with thread and dipped into the dye. The wrinkles in the gathers cause an interesting gradation with the undyed parts held tight under the thread.

  Fig. 38. Kyōkechi

  Shōsō-in Collection

  The designs, full of rich and bright colors, show a wonderful variety. Their motifs may be divided into floral, animal, plant, and landscape. A large number of them show a Chinese influence, but some of them are distinctly Persian. A typical and widely spread design of Persian origin is a hunting scene. In the Hōryū-ji we have a fine specimen in which the design is composed of four lion-hunting equestrians on winged horses, having a large tree in the center, all encased in a roundel studded with stars. (Fig. 39)

  Fig. 39. Part of Tapestry with Hunting Pattern in Persian Style

  Hōryū-ji, Yamato

  8. METAL WORK

  The metal work had a long history already in the Nara Period and a remarkable development had been made, especially in casting and goldsmith work. The first authentic record of metal extraction in Japan was in the third year of the reign of the Emperor Temmu (673-685) when silver was produced in Tsushima Island. Then, in the fifth year of the reign of the Empress Jitō (691), silver was forwarded as a present to the Court from the province of Iyo. From Tsushima came gold in the reign of the Emperor Mommu (697-714) and then from Musashi copper was presented. However, there remain only a few great works from the early years of this period, and it seems that after the epochmaking cast of the Daibutsu, gold and copper were used up and it seems to have been possible to produce only minor articles.

  In the Imperial Household collection is a jug with dragon head, which was formerly kept in the Hōryū-ji temple, measuring 1.8 feet in height. (Fig. 40) It is made of bronze and gilded; and on the body is chiselled the figure of a winged horse, typically Persian in design. Its shape is extremely elegant and the execution wonderful.

  Fig. 40. Gilt-bronze Jug

  Imperial Household Collection

  In the Shōsō-in collection are preserved more than fifty beautiful mirrors. All of them are extremely fascinating. They are of polished bronze like those of Egypt and Greece. Their shape is either a disc or eight-petalled flower form, both held by cords attached to the knobs at the center of the back. They are quite thick and heavy, the largest measuring about ten inches in diameter, and are kept in wooden cases, beautifully lined with padded brocade. As to the technical process, some designs are cast in the same mould; but others are incrusted finely on a la
cquer ground. The designs are composed mostly of animals, clouds, birds, flowers, landscapes, and legends.

  Fig. 41. Bronze Mirror

  Shōsō-in Collection

  In Fig. 41 we have one of the typical mirrors produced in the eighth century. It is in the Shōsō-in collection. The design cast on the back is divided into two sections, the inner and the outer. On each side of the central knob perches a phoenix on a flower, confronting its opposite, with flowers between them. Such symmetrical arrangement is a characteristic feature of the designs developed in China during the T'ang Dynasty. In the outer section birds with floral sprays in their beaks are flying around among flowers and animals are running between the birds. Clouds formed into floral shapes are floating between flowers. Such designs were most popular in this period.

  Fig. 42. Part of Bronze Mirror with Inlaid Design

  Shōsō-in Collection

  Exquisite workmanship of metal inlay on a cast bronze ground will be seen in the eight-petalled-form mirror in the Shōsō-in collection. (Fig. 42) Around the middle knob is represented water in fine silver inlay. Along the water are represented land and mountains in gold inlay and on the land a saint is playing music. In the sky, cranes are flying about and bits of cloud are floating. This design represents the state of ideal happiness conceived by Chinese saints.

  On the whole, the fine spirit of the composition, the richness of the color, and the technical precision of the designs applied to the mirrors are quite different from those of the Chinese Han mirrors. In their elaboration and symmetrical beauty, they have never been excelled by any mirrors of the Greeks and Romans, or by any later Japanese and Chinese mirrors.