As a follow-up to the Tagata Shrine in the last post, I thought I'd post some old Japanese woodblock prints. These are called "Shunga" (春画) which means "spring pictures". Most of the Shunga produced in Japan in the olden days had heterosexual content--but there were also a few like these.
I have always been fascinated with these pictures. I especially like the interesting ways that the bodies are entwined, and the way that some pictures show someone peeking in through a door or window! I think they have had a lot of influence on me, and it's visible in my work.
After WWII, pictures like these could not be seen or sold in Japan. It was illegal to own or show them, and when they appeared in art books, they were always censored, and the interesting body parts were covered and hidden. But in the 1990's, these pictures began to be treated as art, and books filled with Shunga appeared in bookstores throughout Japan. Now, they are considered as part of Japan's art heritage.
I have always been fascinated with these pictures. I especially like the interesting ways that the bodies are entwined, and the way that some pictures show someone peeking in through a door or window! I think they have had a lot of influence on me, and it's visible in my work.
After WWII, pictures like these could not be seen or sold in Japan. It was illegal to own or show them, and when they appeared in art books, they were always censored, and the interesting body parts were covered and hidden. But in the 1990's, these pictures began to be treated as art, and books filled with Shunga appeared in bookstores throughout Japan. Now, they are considered as part of Japan's art heritage.
