"Noh and Art" Exhibition

Kyoto National Museum

This event has ended.

Nogaku, or Noh, is a classic form of Japanese theater that continues to be performed today. However, this theatrical art has not always flourished. Noh, which began in the Muromachi period (1392-1573), has its origins in the ritual music performed at Buddhist temples and shrines and, through the patronage of the Ashikaga shoguns, was enjoyed by the ruling elite. In the Edo period (1616-1867), Noh evolved into a performing art indispensable to the ceremonies of the warrior families. However, the further development of this art sustained a severe blow as a result of the collapse of the Tokugawa shogunate under the Meiji Restoration in 1868. Noh became extraneous in ceremonial functions, and the Noh performers employed by the warlords, as well as the various musical instruments and Noh masks, were left derelict. Noh enthusiasts of all classes, however, saved this art form.
The Art of Noh Theater features registered works of Noh art, which were collected by one such enthusiast. While working as a businessman from the Taisho (1912-1926) to Showa (1926-1989) period, this collector learned to perform Noh and acquired works, primarily consisting of Noh masks and costumes that originally belonged to the families of warlords. This exhibition will publicly present this Noh collection in its entirety for the first time. The array of objects on display, which includes Noh masks and costumes from warlord families as well as costumes produced in modern times, examines various works of art pertaining to the performance of Noh theater from the Edo to the early Showa period.
*Exhibiting at the Collections Hall, Galleries 14 and 17

[Image: "Karaori Noh Costume with Butterflies, Maples, and Vertical Curvilinear Lines" Courtesy of Kyoto National Museum]