Screens within Screens

Japan

Not on view

This pair of screens is unusual in its subject matter: replicas of folding screens painted on the screens themselves, which offer a fanciful catalogue of workshop styles practiced in Japan in the 1700s. They relate to two categories of decorative motifs seen on screens, one known as “Whose Sleeves?” and the other as “Scattered Fans.” Screens of the first type feature variously patterned kimono draped over lacquer racks; those in the latter category are decorated with fans that have themselves been embellished with pictures. In a nod to the “Scattered Fans” genre, one of the replica screens seen here features fans decorated with a range of motifs, from vegetables and insects to episodes from courtly narratives.

Screens within Screens, Pair of six-panel folding screens; ink, color, and gold on gilt paper, Japan

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