RESOURCES
BOOK REVIEW ESSAY
The History of Art in Japan
By Nobuo Tsuji and (trans.) Nicole Coolidge Rousmaniere
New York: Columbia University Press, 2019
664 pages, ISBN: 978-0231193412, Paperback
Reviewed by Brenda G. Jordan
N
obuo Tsuji’s History of Art in Japan was originally published by
the University of Tokyo Press
in 2005 and is now available in English
translation. The book covers Japan’s art
history from the ancient Jōmon Era all
the way to the rise of manga and anime
in the twentieth century. Included is a
list of the main historical eras in both
Romanization and Japanese; a map of
archaeological sites; a timeline for Japan,
Korea, and China; long lists of scholarly
English-languages sources on Japanese
art; and an extensive index that usefully
includes the Japanese rendering of words.
The author is Professor Emeritus at the University of Tokyo and Tama
Art University. Tsuji is considered one of the preeminent Japanese art historians of his generation, a trailblazer in the research on Japanese eccentrics
and the arts of playfulness in Japan. His introduction to this book takes a
refreshingly different approach from the usual beaux arts (fine arts) focus
of old by including a broad selection of Japanese arts: painting, sculpture,
ceramics, lacquer, textiles, metalworking, architecture, gardens, calligraphy, photography, printmaking, and design. Rather than prioritizing one
kind of art over another, Tsuji develops three concepts: “wonderous adornment (kazari), playfulness (asobi), and animism.” This kind of approach
enables us to view the history of art in Japan more broadly and in tune with
the current field of art history, as the idea of bijutsu (fine arts, beaux arts)
didn’t exist in Japan until the latter part of the nineteenth century.
The numerous scholars who assisted the translator with this edition
worked hard to provide context; Tsuji, like so many Japanese scholars, assumed a great deal of knowledge on the part of his readers. Even with that,
there are likely to be sections that are harder for someone unfamiliar with
Japan to fully understand, particularly the numerous references to sites and
objects that are not illustrated. The book is probably most useful to graduate students and scholars of East Asian art history, especially Japanese
art history, and particularly as a reference book. Some chapters, such as
the introduction and chapter 1 on “Jōmon: The Force of Primal Imagination,” can be used for readings in a college classroom as context for the
instructor’s presentations. Other chapters, such as chapter 3, “Asuka and
Hakuhō: The Sphere of East Asian Buddhist Arts,” require a great deal of
previous background in Buddhist art, particularly that of China, in order
to understand the text. An instructor might use selected readings from
Tsuji’s book to complement other texts such as Asian Art (Dorinda Neave,
Lara Blanchard, and Marika Sardar, 2013) rather than attempt to use it as a
main text. Even as an upper-level undergraduate or graduate-level text, the
instructor would need to provide historical background and contextualization in order for students to fully understand the material.
The book is extremely useful for providing a great deal of information and current research in a comprehensive English-language text.
Tsuji draws on recent scholarly research, providing readers with nuanced
views of Japanese art; for example, he includes current ideas about the
relationship between the Jōmon people and Yayoi people, and presents
clear evidence for Korean influences in early Buddhist art. He notes the
opinions and findings of other Japanese scholars and provides the reader
with a wealth of information that one would normally only get from Japanese-language sources.
There are many terms, names, and places listed in the text, as well
as numerous color illustrations. It seems odd, however, that temples are
referred to with the word “temple” following the name (Tōdai-ji temple),
when the “ji” in the name means temple. It is redundant and seems an
unnecessary explanation when so many other words and terms are not repeatedly explained in the same way. On the other hand, unlike many books
on Asian art, the correct Romanization is given for Japanese, Chinese, and
Sanskrit words, and the index at the end gives Japanese characters for
words, which is very useful. The lack of macrons to indicate “long vowels”
in Japanese words (except for those words accepted into English, such as
Tokyo) is a persistent problem in English texts, since this practice leads to
mispronunciation of those words (Hōryūji, not Horyuji).
There are a couple of other issues that the instructor can address in
class presentations. There is little to no attention given to women painters
of the nineteenth century, when women such as Katsushika Ōi (Hokusai’s
daughter, first half of the nineteenth century) and Okuhara Seiko (1837–
1913) were active. One wonders why some artists’ works are illustrated
but not others, such as the case of Tani Bunchō (1763–1840), who was
extremely influential in the art circles of Edo around the turn of the nineteenth century. In fact, throughout the book, works of art are named but
not illustrated. Although these extensive lists are invaluable, this presents a
challenge for the student reading the text.
That having been said, however, no survey of Japanese art could possibly cover everything or illustrate all the important works that a scholar might consider integral to a discussion of Japanese art history. In fact,
many of us would flinch at the idea of attempting such a feat. The field is
enriched, therefore, by the depth of knowledge that Tsuji brings to this
task, as well as to the translator and others who brought this work into
English. n
BRENDA G. JORDAN is an Assistant Director in the Asian Studies Center, University Center for International Studies at the University of Pittsburgh, and a Director for the National
Consortium for Teaching About Asia (NCTA), University of Pittsburgh coordinating site
(one of seven national NCTA coordinating sites). She is also Adjunct Assistant Professor
in the History of Art and Architecture and Japan Studies Coordinator in the Asian Studies
Center. She received her PhD from the University of Kansas and is the Co-author and Coeditor of Copying the Master and Stealing His Secrets: Talent and Training in Japanese Painting
(2003). Her research interests include late nineteenth-century issues of modernization and
modernity, particularly in the work of the painter and print designer Kawanabe Kyōsai.
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Nicole Coolidge Rousmaniere