Kabuki : Japanese theatre prints

Bibliographic Information

Kabuki : Japanese theatre prints

Rosina Buckland

NMS Enterprises Limited Publishing, 2013

  • hbk.
  • pbk.

Search this Book/Journal
Note

Published to accompany the exhibition held at National Museum of Scotland, Oct. 4, 2013-Feb. 2, 2014

Includes bibliographical references: p. 110-111

Description and Table of Contents

Description

In nineteenth century Japan, woodblock prints were a cultural phenomenon, with thousands of designs issued annually. Prints were a cheap and colourful medium of entertainment, much like magazines and posters today. Kabuki is a unique combination of drama, dance, music, and acrobatics, still enthusiastically followed today. It is distinctive for its stylisation, lavish visual appearance, and intense kinetic energy. The plots concern tragic romances, feats of derring-do, and conflicts of loyalty, involving larger-than-life heroes, heroines, and villains. Whatever the story of the play, however, it was the actor above all that the audience came to see. Most of National Museums Scotland's magnificent collection of around 4,000 prints was acquired in the 1880s at the peak of the craze for Japanese art and design in Europe, and features the major artists of the time. This book features the highlights of the exhibition opening at the National Museum of Scotland, Edinburgh, October 2013.

Table of Contents

Foreword by Jane Carmichael, Director of Collections, National Museums Scotland The History of the Japanese Print Collection in National Museums Scotland Highlights from the Collection Additional Figures Bibliography

by "Nielsen BookData"

Details
Page Top