Exhibitions

Japanese Paper Dolls

With the onset of spring, on March 3rd, the Hina-matsuri, the Doll Festival, takes place in Japan, in which dolls have a specific role to play.

Japan imported textiles and the techniques of their preparation from Korea and China, India and the Ryukyu Islands. The Japanese weavers made the cloth from bast and silk thread, till cotton arrived in the 16th century from India, via China and Korea.

The shrines of Japan are used for the ritual ceremonies of two religions - the Shinto and the Buddhist.

Emi Fujii was born in Akita Province in 1939. From 1966 to 1968 she worked in a ceramics factory.

Noriko Yanagisawa was born in Hamamatsu, a city in the Shizuoka Province of Japan, in 1940.

The samurai (retainers), also known as bushi (warriors) arose in the tenth century, and were ranked among the aristocracy of Japan from the twelfth century until Japan entered the modern era with the Meiji Restoration in 1868.

Ink drawings are made on silk or on paper. The ink is a compound of charcoal from pine wood and various glues.

In traditional Japanese art bridges are depicted in paintings and prints of landscapes and scenery, but there is no specific "bridge" genre.

Belief in demons and spirits has been deep-rooted in Japanese folklore throughout history.