History of Japanese Art

by Penelope Mason, Donald Dinwiddie

Japanese art, like so many expressions of Japanese culture, is fascinatingly rich in its contrasts and paradoxes. Since the country opened its doors to the outside world in the mid-nineteenth century. Japanese art and culture have enjoyed an immense popularity in the West. When in 1993 renowned scholar Penelope Mason wrote the the first edition of History of Japanese Art, it was the first such volume in thirty years to chart a detailed overview of the subject. It remains the only comprehensive survey of its kind in English. This second edition ties together more closely the development of all the media within a well-articulated historical and social context.

Genres: Art, Japan, Nonfiction, History, Art History, Japanese Literature, Reference

432 pages, Perfect Paperback

First published January 28, 1993

Reviews

[Amlux · Rating 3 out of 5]

It's just a textbook but it's one of the most interesting ones I've read for what it's worth and has a very impressive collection of artworks to study.

[Mallory McGuire · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is a textbook that is a very rich and exhaustive primer on Japanese art, from prehistoric Japan until today. The writing style is very readable and clear, and thus this is a very useful and helpful book for those interested in Japanese history.

The downsides are these however:
1) It is very tedious and at times very boring.
2) If you want the history of anime, look elsewhere.

I recommend it if you want to learn about Japanese art history, but I don't think this is suitable for pleasure reading.

[Erika · Rating 3 out of 5]

I love Japanese Art, but this book feels disorganized at points.
It is way too comprehensive on some themes that the writer probably had a lot of interest in, but some aspects are not too explained.
It probably doesn't help either that I have to memorize through this 1 kg shit.

[Nabilah · Rating 3 out of 5]

Despite looking like one, it is more than just a coffee book, it is quite comprehensive. It's a pretty big thing.

[Melinda · Rating 3 out of 5]

I thought the book was insightful, very well written, although a bit more exhaustive than I expected. It's much more informative than I expected. However, it doesn't concentrate on much contemporary history when it comes to their art. Kind of stops around the 1950-1960s. Unless she's published a revision or next edition.

[K W · Rating 4 out of 5]

"just a textbook - 3 stars. a little exhausting"

5/5 The best introduction to Japanese Art History in English. Of course this comes with its implications and issues, but if you want to know how different types of lacquer wares were fired and how vessels looked like during the Jõmon Period, this is the overview work you need.

[Kathleen · Rating 3 out of 5]

This was really informative. It was kind of hard to read because there was a lot of information and it was hard to take notes on. Otherwise, it was really interesting.

[Brenda · Rating 2 out of 5]

Comprehensive study on Japanese art. Needs support of other books when considering subjects like the origin of Buddhism, as well as contemporary artists.

[Mills College Library]

709.52 M411h 1993