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- Japonisme: When the West started to copy Japan
Japonisme: When the West started to copy Japan
Let's explore how Japan influenced paintings, ceramics, fashion, and more in the 19th century.
Have you ever wondered why so many Western artists seem to have a fascination with Japan?
Or why you might find Japanese-inspired elements in European art and design?
Welcome to the world of Japonisme, also known as Japanism!
This edition has a lot of visuals, but first, a tiny history lesson to explain the term.
What is Japonisme?
Japan was isolated for 200 years until the US forced Japan to reopen in 1853.
The big moment for Japanese art and culture was the 1867 World's Fair in Paris when it was introduced to many Europeans for the first time.
The influence of Japanese art contributed to the West's shift away from strict realism towards more abstract and symbolic forms of representation.
The term "Japonisme" was coined by French art critic Philippe Burty in 1872 to describe this new aesthetic movement.
Léon Monet (Claude’s brother) was a geek
Claude Monet is usually the one most related to Japonisme, but I think his brother is more interesting.
He was a chimist and worked for a manufacturer of synthetic aniline colors specialising in industrial dyes, pigments and textiles.
What’s aniline?
It type of dye invented in the 1850s that enables more vivid colors in paintings. Japan quickly imported it and started to use it in ukiyo-e (woodblock prints).
Léon had books (yeah not just one) of colors and Japanese patterns. Plus, a large collection of ukiyo-e.
There’s no definitive written proof but it’s suggested Léon helped Claude to use such vibrant colors in his paintings.
Claude Monet paintings inspired by Japan
A good example of the use of aniline colors is the painting Claude made of his first wife in a red kimono.
Monet being ahead of his time, he was struggling to survive for quite some time.
But once he got more money, he settled in Giverny and his garden was inspired by Japanese gardens as illustrated by his series of paintings of the Japanese footbridge and water lilies.
How ukiyo-e inspired ceramics
When I lived in Paris, I liked going to St Cloud where there’s a big park to have a nice walk on a sunny Sunday morning.
And next to it is the manufacture nationale de Sèvres, a porcelain factory and museum.
That’s where I learn about the history of ceramics and how Japan also inspired ceramics at the time.
One such example is Felix Bracquemond’s (1833–1914) “Service Rousseau” tableware that was inspired by Hiroshige’s (1797–1858) undated “Fish Series” of woodblock prints.
Western fashion and kimono
I went to a kimono exhibit in Paris last year and here are 2 examples of combining Japanese kimono and Western fashion.
The first one is a kimono made by a haute couture designer for a runway show in the 90s.
And the second one is an example of wa-lolita fashion.
Wa-lolita (和ロリ) is a style of fashion that is the combination of western fashion with Japanese kimono.
Here it’s a mix of a Western maid outfit and Japanese kimono.
Other tidbits
Vincent van Gogh was so enamored with ukiyo-e prints that he copied several, including Hiroshige's "Plum Park in Kameido.”
The collecting of Japanese art became so popular that by the early 20th century, some of the best collections of ukiyo-e prints were found in Europe rather than Japan.
Japanese calligraphy inspired Western abstract expressionists, influencing their use of gesture and line.
Japan goods were so popular — like ceramics or folding fans — that a lot of European manufacturers started to make copies instead of just being inspired.
Going Further
Weekly Digest
Since Japan reopened after COVID-19, there’s been a wave of foreign Youtubers disruptive public order in Japan.
Fidias Panayiotou is one of them. He made videos where you can see him dodging train fares and freeloading at hotels. Some of them was probably fake though.
Still, now he’s been elected to European parliament.
If you want to change careers, seems like they elect anybody in that parliament.
Daiso is a chain of 100 yen stores where you can find a lot of useless crap, but also really useful goods, for cheap.
This kit to make mochi is probably more on the useless side.
This one is cracking me up. Japanese really have a hard time to make drawings not look cute nowadays?
I read that headline and thought they were exaggerating. Then I scrolled to see the poster and laughed out loud!
Here’s the poster so you don’t have to click.
