Japanese Art, Architecture, Poems & Plays

Art & Architecture Japan borrowed artistic ideas from China and Korea Japanese artisans made many things with shiny red and black lacquer coating, such as: Wooden Statues * Furniture * Household Items Learned “Landscape Paintings” from the Chinese Used Ink or Watercolors Painted Images of Nature or battles on paper scrolls or on silk Origami – Japanese nobles learned to fold paper to make decorative objects Flower arranging Buddhist monks and the Samurai Tea Drinking into a beautiful ceremony

ART, ARCHITECTURE

Shinto Shrines Buddhist Temples Built in the Japanese Style Built near a sacred rock, tree, or other natural feature Usually a wooden building with a single room and a roof made of rice straw People enter the shrine through a sacred gate called a “Torii” Built in the Chinese style Had massive tile roofs held up by thin wooden pillars Richly decorated Had many statues, paintings, and altars

Religious Shrines Buddhist Temple Shinto Shrine

Poems & Plays Japanese borrowed China’s writing system – Wrote the language of Chinese pictures that stood for whole words Since the Japanese & Chinese languages were so different, in the A.D. 800’s they added symbols that stood for sounds (much like the alphabet) – Made reading and writing easier Believed a person’s handwriting revealed much about a person’s education, social standing, and character Wrote poems, stories, and plays – Oldest form of poetry was the Tanka Tanka is an unrhymed poem of five lines (captured Nature’s beauty and the joys and sorrows of life) – Haiku formed in the 1600’s Consisted of three lines of words with a total of 17 syllables – Were colorful and full of emotion and imagery Created Plays

Plays

Created Plays – The oldest type of plays were called “NOH” Used to teach Buddhist ideas in the 1300s Performed on a simple, bare stage Actors wore masks and elaborate robes They danced, gestured, and chanted poetry to the beat of drums and flutes