Phoenixes and Paulownia

The immense heraldic birds on display in these byøbu reflect the Momoyama era's spirit of newly gained self-confidence and an affinity for grand expressive statements in painting, architecture, the textile and ceramic arts, as well as garden design. While that period preceded the arrival of prosperity, it clearly marked an extra---ordinary moment in Japanese cultural history, one frequently compared with the twelfth century of the Heian period. Through the extensive use of gold-foil backgrounds rather than the somber palette of carefully orchestrated ink tones evident in Muromachi byøbu, patrons colla-borated with artists as well as craftsmen in fostering a decidedly new look in much of Japanese painting. Here for instance there is no imaginary vista suggesting China's vast waterways and ...