This database is a comprehensive collection of articles from Nihon bijutsu nenkan (Year Book of
Japanese Art), published by the Tokyo National Institute for Cultural Properties (Tobunken).
The winners of the 6th Yomiuri Aoniyoshi Prize (sponsored by the Yomiuri Shimbun with special support from the Japan Society for the Conservation of Cultural Property), which publicly honors individuals and organizations for their outstanding achievements in the fields of conservation science and restoration, were announced. The Aoniyoshi Prize was given to YAMAMOTO Tadayoshi, the only craftsman in Japan who consistently carries out the production of ‘suketa’, an essential part of hand-made Japanese paper making, from processing the materials to completion. The Encouragement Prize went to KUROSAKA Noboru, who has protected landscapes created by old cherry trees as a tree surgeon, and the Special Prize was given to Bijutsuin, which has been involved in the restoration of numerous Buddhist statues and craft works since its foundation in the Meiji period. (Japanese)
KŌNOIKE Tomoko’s ‘Shira – Spirit from the Wild’ and HAMADA Juri’s ‘Ru•Ten•Sei I’ were selected as the 5th Higashiyama Kaii Memorial Nikkei Nihonga Award, which was established to honor the achievements of nihonga artist, HIGASHIYAMA Kaii, and to recognize the next generation of nihonga artists. The Special Committee Award was shared by AZAMI Takako’s ‘Pine Tree: Muison-so’ and MISE Natsunosuke’s ‘Quest for mountain azalea’. The exhibition featuring these prize-winning works along with other selected paintings was held at the Ueno Royal Museum from May 19 to June 3. (Japanese)
On April 21, the special exhibition ‘KORIN: Irises and Eight Bridges: Masterpieces by Kōrin from the Nezu Museum and the Metropolitan Museum of Art’ opened at the Nezu Museum. The exhibition featured two of OGATA Kōrin’s masterpieces, a pair of gold screens ‘Irises’ (National Treasure) in the museum’s collection and another pair of gold screens ‘Irises at Yatsuhashi’ in the collection of the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York. This was the first time for them to be exhibited together since the 1915 commemorative bicentennial exhibition of Kōrin’s death. The exhibition had been originally scheduled to be held the previous year. However, it was postponed due to the Great East Japan Earthquake. (Japanese)
On April 20, the Council for Cultural Affairs submitted a report on two assets to be designated as National Treasures and 46 assets to be Important Cultural Properties to HIRANO Hirofumi, Minister of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology. The two assets to be designated as National Treasures are dogū, a clay figurine, from the mid-Jōmon period, excavated at the Nishinomae site in Funagata-machi, Yamagata Prefecture, known for its graceful female form; and Amida Triad, a triptych of hanging scrolls, painted by Pu-yue in the Southern Song dynasty in China and brought to Japan (Shōjōkein temple, Kyoto Prefecture). The list for Important Cultural Properties includes Wooden standing statue of Shukongōshin and Wooden standing statue of Jinja Daishō by Kaikei, sculptor of Buddhist statues in the Kamakura period (Kongōbuji temple, Wakayama Prefecture). The Council for Cultural Affairs also recommended that 166 buildings, including the main building of JR Kotohira Station (Kotohira-chō, Kagawa Prefecture), which serves as the entrance to the Konpira pilgrimage, as well as ‘Archaeological materials in the Suwa region’ collected by the late archaeologist FUJIMORI Eiichi from Nagano Prefecture, be registered as Registered Tangible Cultural Properties. (Japanese)
The reconstruction of the Rokkakudō of the Izura Institute of Art and Culture, Ibaraki University (Kitaibaraki City, Ibaraki Prefecture) was completed, and its completion ceremony was held on April 17. The Rokkakudō, associated with OKAKURA Tenshin, was washed away by tsunami caused by the Great East Japan Earthquake. Under the direction of MIWA Isoji, Special Appointed Professor of Ibaraki University, the reconstruction was undertaken to reproduce the building as faithfully as it was when it was first built in 1905, including the importation of windowpanes, made using the same manufacturing process as used at the time of the construction, from the United Kingdom. The total construction cost was approximately ¥43 million, most of which was covered by donations. (Japanese)
On December 14, the Council for Cultural Affairs (Commissioner: MIYATA Ryōhei) submitted a report on 126 buildings to be registered as Registered Tangible Cultural Properties to TANAKA Makiko, Minister of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology. The list includes the Tokyo Tower (Minato Ward, Tokyo), which has become a symbol of Japan’s post-war reconstruction and rapid economic growth; the former Okada Family Residence Main Building (Asahikawa City, Hokkaidō), an Art Deco style house built in 1933; the main hall of Renkeiji temple (Agui-chō, Aichi Prefecture), a Jōdo shinshū (known as Shin Buddhism or True Pure Land Buddhism) temple completed in 1811; and Izumo Hinomisaki Lighthouse, the tallest working lighthouse in Japan at 44 meters high (Izumo City, Shimane Prefecture). (Japanese)
