Elena Rossi
Japanese Nanban paintings are a unique art form that emerged during the Momoyama period in the 16th and 17th centuries. This art style is characterised by a fusion of Christian iconography and traditional Japanese painting techniques, reflecting an unparalleled convergence of cultures. The arrival of Westerners by ship heavily influenced the imagery and themes depicted in these paintings, setting them apart from other forms of Japanese art. Japanese Nanban paintings stand as a testament to the cultural exchange and artistic innovation that occurred during this period in Japan's history.
| Characteristics | Values |
|---|---|
| Time period | 16th and 17th centuries |
| Subject matter | Europeans' arrival in Japan, their trade and missionary activities |
| Artistic style | Large-scale folding screen paintings, meticulous details, decorative colours, gold leaf |
| Historical context | Early Japanese encounters with the Western world |
| Cultural influence | Exchange with "Southern Barbarians" from Portugal and Spain |
| Artistic influence | Kanō school of painting |
| Artist | Kanō Naizen (1570–1616) |
| Surviving works | Over 90 pairs of Namban byōbu (folding screens) |
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What You'll Learn
Japanese people's curiosity towards foreigners
The Japanese people's curiosity towards foreigners is reflected in the unique art form that emerged during the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries—Nanban art. This artistic style was influenced by the Japanese people's encounters and interactions with foreigners, specifically traders and missionaries from Europe, particularly Portugal, and is reflected in the content and style of the paintings.
Nanban art, or "Southern barbarian" art, offers a glimpse into the Japanese people's fascination with and curiosity towards foreigners during this period. The paintings depict vibrant scenes of foreign traders and missionaries arriving in Japanese ports and walking through the streets of inland towns. These artworks provide a unique perspective on how the Japanese people perceived and interacted with outsiders during this era.
One notable example of Nanban art is the folding screens, known as "byōbu," which were produced in great numbers during the early 17th century. These screens often depicted scenes of cultural exchange between the Japanese and foreigners. For instance, one pair of screens attributed to the artist Kanō Sanraku, depicts a large ship entering a Japanese port on the right-hand screen, with the captain and missionaries on shore, while the left-hand screen shows sea captains and Western women in a foreign country.
The production of Nanban art was influenced by the curiosity and interest of the Japanese people in the new and unfamiliar cultures that they were encountering. The term "Nanban" itself reflects this curiosity, as it was a Sino-Japanese word originally referring to the peoples of South and Southeast Asia. As the Japanese had limited direct contact with foreigners prior to this period, the arrival of the Portuguese and other Europeans sparked a sense of fascination and intrigue, which is evident in the detailed and vivid depictions of foreign visitors in Nanban art.
The emergence of Nanban art also coincided with the development of other artistic movements in Japan, such as Yamato-e, which flourished during the Heian period (794–1185) and continued to influence art in the Edo period (1615–1868). Yamato-e art focused on distinctively Japanese subject matter, depicting courtly splendour, natural worlds, and heroes of the past. This inward-looking artistic movement coexisted with the outward-looking curiosity of Nanban art, reflecting the complex cultural dynamics of the time.
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The pejorative term Southern Barbarians
The term "barbarian" has been used by many cultures throughout history to refer to and deride other cultures or groups of people. The word originates from the Ancient Greek "bárbaros", which was used to describe non-Greek-speaking peoples, including the Egyptians, Persians, Medes, and Phoenicians. The term was also used to mock other Greek tribes with peculiar dialects. The Ancient Greeks associated the term with a sense of otherness and a lack of civility, portraying those labelled as barbarians as primitive, savage, and warlike.
In traditional Chinese culture, the term "barbarian" had several connotations and was used to refer to various non-Chinese peoples. The Chinese classics employed directional compounds such as “eastern”, “western”, “southern”, and “northern” barbarians to refer to non-Sinitic peoples living outside the borders of the Huaxia civilization. The "Southern Barbarians" or "Nanman" specifically referred to the Baiyue people from south of the Yangtze and the Burmic people beyond the Hengduan Mountains. The term "Nanman" shares its roots with "Nanban", the Sino-Japanese word that inspired the artistic genre of Nanban art.
Nanban art refers to Japanese art from the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries that was influenced by contact with the "Southern Barbarians" or "Nanbanjin", traders and missionaries from Portugal and, to a lesser extent, Spain. Nanban art includes Christian icons and objects, but the Nanban byōbu, or folding screens, are particularly notable. These screens depict foreigners arriving in Japanese ports and walking through inland towns, showcasing vibrant exchanges between the Japanese and the Southern Barbarians.
The term "barbarian" is inherently pejorative, and its usage has been criticised by modern scholars, particularly in reference to the “barbarian kingdoms” that arose after the collapse of the Western Roman Empire. The term reinforces a simplistic dichotomy between civilised and uncivilised peoples, ignoring the cultural diversity and complexity of the groups being labelled as "barbarian".
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The arrival of Europeans in Japan
Nanban art, including paintings, folding screens, and Christian icons, flourished in the 16th and 17th centuries as a result of this cultural exchange. The arrival of Europeans in Japan is specifically depicted in Namban byōbu, or folding screens, which provide a vivid and detailed historical record. These screens often show the arrival of foreign ships, the loading and unloading of cargo, and the interaction between foreigners and locals in Japanese ports and inland towns.
One notable example of these folding screens is a pair attributed to Kanō Sanraku, with the right-hand screen depicting a large ship entering a Japanese port and the left-hand screen showing sea captains and Western women in a foreign country. Another pair of screens in the Metropolitan Museum of Art depicts Europeans landing on Japanese shores, with the left screen showing ships arriving at port and the right screen showing the ship's captain and crew being greeted by missionaries near a Christian church.
These Namban byōbu screens not only provide a visual record of the first encounters between Europeans and the Japanese but also reflect the Japanese reaction to their first foreign visitors, including curiosity, bemusement, and apprehension. The artistic style and subject matter of these screens offer a unique perspective on the early cultural exchange between Southern Europeans and the Japanese, marking the initiation of the world's first trade relationship between Japan and Europe.
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The use of gold leaf in Namban art
Nanban art refers to Japanese art from the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries that was influenced by contact with the "Southern Barbarians", or traders and missionaries from Portugal and, later, other Europeans. Namban byōbu, or folding screens, are particularly notable, with over 90 pairs surviving today. These screens are vivid paintings that depict foreigners arriving in Japanese ports and towns.
The use of gold leaf, or Kin-haku, in art is a traditional practice with a long history. The ancient Egyptians were probably the first to gild artwork with gold leaf, but the Japanese have long been credited with producing the thinnest gold leaf. In a 2014 study, Dr Sofia Pessanha of the Atomic Physics Center of the University of Lisbon in Portugal analysed six Namban paper screens using X-ray fluorescence and found that they were gilded with gold leaf that was hand-beaten to a nanometer scale. This non-invasive technique can also be used to date other forms of artwork without causing any damage.
Gold leaf is a very thin sheet made from a combination of gold and other metals. It is almost weightless and can only be handled with specially designed tools. The traditional water gilding technique is the most difficult and highly regarded form of gold leafing and has remained unchanged for hundreds of years, still being done by hand.
Gold leaf is used in various artistic traditions, including Buddhist art and other Asian traditions, to decorate statues and symbols. It is also used in Islamic calligraphy and manuscript illumination, where it is crushed in honey or gum arabic and suspended in gelatinous water to create gold ink. In Western illuminated manuscripts, gold areas are typically created by applying glue to the page and then rubbing gold leaf onto it.
In Namban art, the finest examples of Kin-haku are the Namban folding screens, or byobu, made during the late Momoyama (around 1573 to 1603) and early Edo (around 1603 to 1868) periods. These screens, with their intricate gold leaf patterns, vividly depict early commercial contact between Japan and Europe, with European ships entering Japanese ports and missionaries interacting with locals.
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The influence of Kanō Naizen
Kanō Naizen (1570–1616) was a prominent Japanese painter and a member of the esteemed Kanō school of painters. He was the son of the head of the school, Kanō Eitoku, and the brother of the school's heir, Kanō Mitsunobu, as well as the famed painter Kanō Sanraku. Naizen often worked alongside his family members in the head Kanō workshop in Kyoto, restoring various imperial buildings, Buddhist temples, and Shinto shrines that had been destroyed during the Kamakura period and the Genpei Wars.
In terms of stylistic influence, Naizen is sometimes overshadowed by his father and brothers. However, he is particularly renowned for his byōbu screen paintings of Nanban, or "Southern Barbarians", which were traders and missionaries from Portugal and, later, other European countries. Naizen's "Arrival of the Southern Barbarians Screen" from around 1600 is a detailed and vibrant example of this. This six-fold byōbu (lacquer and gilded screen) depicts a Nanban ship arriving at a Japanese port, with traders, captains, Jesuit missionaries, Franciscan monks, and Japanese believers. It also features rare beasts from Nanban, such as elephants, Arabian horses, and greyhounds.
Naizen's work is a prime example of Nanban art, which refers to Japanese art from the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries that was influenced by contact with Nanban traders and missionaries. This art form includes Christian icons and other objects, but Nanban byōbu, or folding screens, are particularly notable. These screens often depicted foreigners arriving in Japanese ports and walking through the streets of inland towns.
In addition to his byōbu screens, Naizen also produced other notable paintings. One such work is "Festivals of Toyokuni", which was produced in 1605 for the seventh anniversary of the death of Kampaku Toyotomi Hideyoshi. This painting demonstrates Naizen's versatility as an artist and his ability to capture the splendour of Japanese festivals.
Overall, Kanō Naizen's influence lies in his detailed and vibrant depictions of Nanban traders and missionaries, which have become emblematic of Nanban art. His work captures a unique period in Japanese history, when cultural exchange with Europe was flourishing, and his byōbu screens, in particular, offer a fascinating glimpse into this era.
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Frequently asked questions
Nanban art refers to Japanese art from the 16th and 17th centuries influenced by contact with the Nanban or 'Southern Barbarians', traders and missionaries from Europe, especially Portugal.
Japanese Namban paintings are unique because they depict Europeans' arrival in Japan, often featuring meticulous details and decorative colours accentuated by gold leaf.
The Namban paintings depict foreigners of all colours arriving in Japanese ports and walking in the streets of Japanese inland towns.
Namban byōbu or folding screens are particularly notable, with over 90 pairs surviving to this day.
The term "Nanban" is a Sino-Japanese word, originally referring to the peoples of South Asia and Southeast Asia. During the Nanban trade period, it was used to designate the Portuguese, who first arrived in 1543, and later other Europeans.
