ED 422 211

AUTHORTITLEINSTITUTION

SPONS AGENCYPUB DATENOTE

AVAILABLE FROM

PUB TYPE

LANGUAGEJOURNAL CITEDRS PRICEDESCRIPTORS

IDENTIFIERS

ABSTRACT

DOCUMENT RESUME

SO 028 852

Smigielski, Alan; Casey, Douglas, Ed.Japan: Images of a People.Smithsonian Institution, Washington, DC. Office ofElementary and Secondary Education.Brother International Corp., Somerset, NJ.1997-00-0018p.; "Take Home" instructions and also in Spanish.Translation by Sarita Rodriguez.Smithsonian Office of Elementary and Secondary Education,Arts and Industries Building 1163, MRC 402, Washington, DC20560; (free).Collected Works - Serials (022) -- Guides Non-Classroom(055)

English, SpanishArt to Zoo: Teaching with the Power of Objects; Jan-Feb 1997MF01/PC01 Plus Postage.*Art; Art History; *Asian Studies; Cultural Awareness;Elementary Secondary Education; Foreign Countries;Geography; Instructional Materials; InterdisciplinaryApproach; *Japanese Culture; Multicultural Education;*Museums; Non Western Civilization; Social Studies; WorldHistory*Japan

This issue of "Art to Zoo" focuses on Japanese art and isadapted from materials developed by the education department of theSmithsonian Institution's Freer Gallery of Art and the Arthur M. SacklerGallery. After learning how to look at paintings, students make paper screensthat resemble Japanese screens. Background essays about Japan place the artlessons within a larger social studies unit on Japan. Sections of the lessonplan include: (1) "Geography of Japan"; (2) "Looking for Clues: Paintings asInformation Sources"; and (3) "Japanese Screens." Worksheets, take-homepages, and a resources list conclude the unit. Lessons are designed forgrades 4-9 and address art, geography, and social studies. (EH)

********************************************************************************

Reproductions supplied by EDRS are the best that can be madefrom the original document.

********************************************************************************

Japan: Images of a People.

by Alan Smigielski

PERMISSION TO REPRODUCE ANDDISSEMINATE THIS MATERIAL HAS

BEEN GRANTED BY

K S tv6 +h_

TO THE EDUCATIONAL RESOURCESINFORMATION CENTER (ERIC)

1

U.S. DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATIONOffice of Educational Research and Improvement

EDUCATIONAL RESOURCES INFORMATIONCENTER (ERIC)

le This document has been reproduced asreceived from the person or organizationoriginating it.

0 Minor changes have been made toimprove reproduction quality.

Points of view or opinions stated in thisdocument do not necessarily representofficial OERI position or policy.

(NIlf) Smithsonian Institution, Washington, DC. Office of Elementary and00 Secondary Education.

00 BBB31991=Brother International Corp., Somerset, NJ.CN1

(=), Published: 1997-02

2

Smithsonian Institution

JAPAN:Images ofa People

Inside

Lesson Plan

Take-Home Pagein English/Spanish

Subjects

Art

Geography

Social Studies

Grades

4-9

Publication of Art to Zoois made possible throughthe generous support ofthe Brother InternationalCorporation.

brother

Cr-iTolK,.7octi

SC

January/February 1997

/F 2

40.1k

-,Jr,

-

4- .

sofg:1011#''

Milli' 0 ' .

\ 0 I0

0 °0

-4N,..,

.....,,,

Ls-

CONTENTS

Background Essay I Page 3

Lesson Plan Step I Page 5

Activity Page I Page 6

Lesson Plan Step 2 Page 7

Activity Page 2A Page 8

Activity Page 2B Page 9

Activity Page 2C Page 10

Background Essay 2 Page 11

Lesson Plan Step 3 Page 12

Take-Home Page 1 Page 13

Take-Home Page 2 Page 14

Resources Page 15

Art to Zoo's purpose is to help teachers bring into

their classrooms the educational power of museums

and other community resources.

Art 10 Zoo draws on the Smithsonian's hundreds

of exhibitions and programsfrom art, history. andscience to aviation and folklifeto create classroom-ready materials for grades four through nine.

Each of the four annual issues explores a single

topic through an interdisciplinary, multiculturalapproach.

The Smithsonian invites teachers to duplicate

Art to Zoo materials for educational use.

COVER PHOTO

Detail from Cherry Blossomsat Ueno ParkSix-foki screen

By Hishikawa Moronohu (1618-94)

Ukiyo-e school, Edo period,

seventeenth century

Color and gold powder on paper

Freer Gallery of Art accession

number F06.267

180 x 382.2 cm (70 7/8 x 150 1/2")

This is a detail from a screen

painted in the seventeenth

century by Japanese artist

Hishikawa Moronobu depicting

one of Tokyo's most famous

seasonal attractions: cherry

blossoms in Ueno Park. To this

day visitors throng to the park in

the springtime to sit under the

cherry trees with their friends,

eat a picnic, and watch the

delicate petals swirl in the

breeze.

You may request a

large-print or diskversion of Art to Zooby writing to theaddress listed on the

back cover or by faxingto (202) 357-2116.

BACKGROUND ESSAY 1

Japanese artbeautiful but mysterious? Demystify some examples of Japanesepainting and help your students better understand and appreciate the culture thatproduced them with this issue of Art to Zoo. The lessons have been adapted frommaterials developed by the education department of the Smithsonian Institution'sFreer Gallery of Art and Arthur M. Sackler Gallery, the two national museums ofAsian art. (See page 15 for information on how to obtain their materials.) Afterlearning how to look at paintings, your students can make paper screens thatresemble Japanese screens. But first, the following information about the countrycan help you place the art lessons within a larger social studies unit on Japan.

Geography

Japan is a crescent-shapedarchipelago of four large andmore than a thousand smallislands. The large islands areHokkaido, the northernmost;Honshu, the largest; Shikoku;and Kyushu. The combinedarea of the islands is about145,000 square miles, whichis larger than the state ofCalifornia or the country ofItaly. If it were superimposedover the East Coast of theUnited States, the group ofislands would co'ver a spacefrom Maine to Florida.

Japan is bordered on thenorth by the Sea of Okhotsk,on the east by the PacificOcean, and on the west bythe Tsushima Strait, the Seaof Japan, and the East ChinaSea. No part of Japan ismore than one hundred milesfrom the sea. Most of the

land is mountainous, leavingonly the coastal areas forlarge cities, industrialdevelopment, and farming.

Because of Japan'slocation in an unstable areaof the Earth's crust, earth-quakes and tremors occurthere frequently. Underseaquakes can cause destructivetidal waves called tsunami.Some volcanic mountains arestill active, and there aremany hot springs, which theJapanese people use forrecreational and medicinalpurposes.

Climate

Just as the climate fromMaine to Florida varies, sodoes the climate vary fromthe northernmost to thesouthernmost islands ofJapan. Most of Japan hasfour seasons: winter(December to February),with heavy snow only onHokkaido and Honshu;

5

spring (March to May);summer (June to September)with hot and humid condi-tions; and fall (October toNovember). Much rain fallsduring the spring, summer,and fall. The precipitationstarts first in the south andmoves north during June andJuly, and destructive tropicalstorms called typhoons occurin September and October.

Vegetation

Because of the hot,humid summers there, morethan 17,000 varieties ofplants grow in Japan. Manytrees thrive, includingbroad-leafed evergreenssuch as camellia, deciduousbeech and oak, and conifers.Bamboo grows on Honshuand on the islands to thesouth. Many flowering plantsflourish: azaleas and treepeonies bloom in April and

May, respectively; thelotus in August; the chrysan-themum (Japan's nationalflower) in November; andthe plum in February.

Rice Growing andProcessing

Rice cultivation wasintroduced to Japan fromother Asian countries by thefifth century B.C. Today, ricegrows on almost half of thecultivated land in Japan.The climate in most areasof Japan allows for one cropof rice per year.

Long ago the Japanesebelieved the rice plant wasa gift from the gods. Forhundreds of years the diffi-cult work of growing ricewas done by hand, but nowmuch is done by machine.However, the number ofhours of labor per acre is stillvery high, about 330 hoursper acre in 1975. This isabout forty times the number

Art to Zoo Japan: Images of a People January/Febivary 1997 3

of hours of labor needed peracre for the production ofcorn in the United States.

Farmers start rice seeds insmall plots of dry land, butthe plants need to grow inshallow water, so they buildlow walls to form a paddyaround a field. Pipes bringwater from a nearby river toflood the field artificially.After three or four weeks,farmers transplant the youngplants to the paddy. The fruit,a grain, is at the top of thestalk. When the rice is ripe,it resembles the oat plant andis golden yellow.

Farmers drain the paddyto harvest the rice. Theycut the stalks, tie them inbundles, and hang them upto dry. When the bundles aredry, they thresh (beat) therice and winnow it (toss it inthe air) to separate the grain(the part that is eaten) fromthe outer brown husk. Finallythe harvesters store the grainin bags. Rice is Japan'sstaple food and the plant'sstraw becomes part of manyuseful products such as hats,sandals, floor mats (tatami),wine (sake), and food forlivestock. Huge ropes madeof rice straw decorateentrances to shrines of theShinto religion.

Architecture and FurnitureJapanese architecture

emphasizes the use of naturalmaterials and the combina-tion of interior and exteriorspace through the use of slid-ing screens as doors and win-dows. Gardens are a part ofthe design of most buildings.The design of stilt-raisedbuildings originated from thestyle of architecture used inancient granaries. Steeproofs with wide eaves weredesigned to shed heavy rains.The multi-storied towers,called pagodas, developedfrom the finial decorationsfound on the tops of Indianstupas, mound-shapedstructures built to housereligious relics, usuallyrelated to Buddha.

Although there are nowhigh-rise apartments inJapan, traditional Japanesehouses have only one ortwo stories and no basement.They use space to the fullest;often the same room com-bines living room, diningroom, and bedroom. Insteadof solid walls, sliding paperscreens, called fusuma, andfolding screens, called

4 Art to Zoo Japan: Images of a People January/February 1997

byobu, separate the area intorooms as necessary. Floorcoverings include rice-strawmats called tatami. Tatamiare a standard size: six feetlong, three feet wide, andtwo inches thick. As a result,rooms are measured by thenumber of mats they hold,not in feet and inches.Standard rooms measureeight, six, or four-and-a-halfmats. A bed, called a futon,consists of two mattressesthat can be folded up andstored during the day.Families use a low table andcushions for dining and canpush the furniture aside atother times.

Most homes contain atokonoma, a niche for dis-playing art work, a flowerarrangement, or both. Manypeople change the displayseasonally or more often.

ClothingToday most Japanese

wear Western-styleclothing but may choose thetraditional kimono for specialoccasions. The kimono is afloor-length robe heldtogether by a sash at thewaist. Men's sashes arenarrow, women's sashes,called obi, are wide. Forformal occasions, men wearkimono in dark shades andwomen wear very colorfuland beautifully embroideredkimono. Men sometimes

6

wear wide-legged trouserscalled hakama under a shortkimono. The most formalkimono are black garmentsdecorated with white,miniature family crests (oneon the back, one on each ofthe sleeves, and one on eachside of the chest). The crestdesigns are usually circularor square and are derivedfrom flowers, plants, birds,animals, and many othersubjects.

A summer kimono madeof light cotton is calledyukata. Winter kimono arewoolen. Special socks (tabi),which are divided betweenthe big toe and the rest of thetoes, cover the feet. Over thesocks go thong-type sandals,which can be worn oneither foot.

Adapted from an essayby Nancy Hague Lyons andSarah Ridley in Japan:Images and Words.

LESSON PLANStep 1

GEOGRAPHY OF JAPAN

ObjectivesIdentify major

geographical features ofJapan.

Interpret Japan'sgeographical location withreference to the UnitedStates.

MaterialsCopies of Activity Page 1.Maps of the world, Japan,

and the United States(you might also use theatlas section of your socialstudies book).

Pens, pencils, coloredmarkers, crayons.

SubjectsGeography, social studies

Procedure1. Tell your students that

during the next few classmeetings they'll be studyingsome of the traditional art ofJapan. Ask them to describeJapan's location in the worldrelative to the United States.Answers may vary, butstudents will probably

7

conclude that the Japanesechain of islands is a greatdistance from the UnitedStates and close to the largerland mass of Asia.

2. Give each student acopy of Activity Page 1,"Mapping It Out," and othermaps you have collected.Using Background Essay 1as a guide, tell your studentsthat Japan consists of a chainof mountainous islandsthat cover more than onethousand miles (1,600 km)from north to southaboutthe distance from Maine toFlorida in the United States.Emphasize that onlyrelatively small coastal areasof Japan are suitable for set-tlement and farming and thatthere is a great variation inclimate from north to south.

3. Direct your studentsto Activity Page 1. Askthem to estimate the distancebetween the west coast of theUnited States and Japanusing the provided inset mapof the world or maps in theirsocial studies books oratlases. (Be sure to stress theimportance of a map's scalein determining distance.)Students should concludethat Japan is about 6,200miles (10,000 kin) from theWest Coast of the UnitedStates. Have them measureits distance from the coast ofAsia. To place the measure-ments in perspective, havestudents determine distancesbetween their communityand diverse parts of the

United States as well asbetween different points onthe island chain.

4. Ask your students tocomplete the map of Japanincluded in Activity Page 1by placing the names of theselected islands, bodies ofwater, and cities in the cor-rect locations. (Younger stu-dents might enjoy coloringthe landforms and bodies ofwater.) When your studentshave finished the activity, askthem to think about whetheran island location mightaffect the culture of a people(you might also refer to otherisland nations such as GreatBritain, Australia, andCuba). How do people over-come geographic barriers?(Consider related issues suchas trade and language.)Mention that traditionalJapanese culture incorporatedboth indigenous elementsand cultural influences fromChina and other areas of theAsian mainland. Also notethat the sea is an importantresource to island peoples,both as a source of foodand as a natural means oftransportation.

5. Conclude the lesson bytelling students that in thenext step they will be askedto observe how geographicalfeatures appear in thetraditional art of Japan.

Art to Zoo Japan: Images of a People January/February 1997 5

ACTIVITY PAGE 1Mapping It Out

Directions:Locate thefollowing

features onthe map.

Major islands Major bodies Nearby Selected citiesHonshu of water countries TokyoKyushu Pacific Ocean Russia YokohomaShikoku Sea of Japan China KyotoHokkaido Sea of Okhotsk North Korea OsakaOkinawa East China Sea South Korea NagoyaRyukyu Islands Sapporo

A:7 Al IlkLtigiA1111111WRIAIONVIIIIIK

AO"it in le,_plawror

6 Art to Zoo Japan: Images of a People January/February 1997Japan

A

350

3000 6000 mi

4800 9600 km

LESSON PLANStep 2

LOOKING FOR CLUES:

PAINTINGS AS

INFORMATION SOURCES

ObjectivesInterpret Japanese and

American paintings.Evaluate paintings as

sources of cultural andhistorical information.

MaterialsCopies of Activity Pages

2A, B, and C.Pens or pencils.

SubjectsArt, social studies

Procedure1. Tell your students

that they'll be acting likedetectives in this activity.Ask them what detectiveslook for to solve a mystery.Answers may vary, but stu-dents will probably concludethat detectives seek clues thatsuggest a particular sequenceof events in the past.Emphasize that.they'll nowbe looking for clues in paint-ings that can provide insightsinto the daily lives of peoplein earlier times who lived inJapan and the United States.

2. Give each student acopy of Activity page 2A andtwo copies of 2C. Ask themto examine carefully thepainting on Activity Page 2Aand answer the accompany-ing observation questions

from Activity Page 2C. (Donot tell your students the titleor subject of the paintingat this time.) When your stu-dents have finished answer-ing the questions, begin aclass discussion based ontheir responses. Students willprobably conclude that thepainting depicts a town inthe United States during theearly twentieth century. Besure to tell your students thatthe scene was painted byAmerican artist WillardLeroy Metcalf in 1917 andis entitled OctoberMorningDeedield (seeinset for teacher's notes).

3. Give each student acopy of Activity Page 2Band repeat the proceduredescribed in Lesson PlanStep 2. (Again, do not tellyour students the title or sub-ject of the painting yet.) Inthe class discussion, studentsmay conclude that the paint-ing depicts a rural area inJapan sometime in the past.Be sure to tell your studentsthat the painting, entitledCountry Scenes, was paintedby Japanese artist KatsushikaHokusai during the earlydecades of the 1800s (seeinset for teacher's notes).Stress that the painting wasdone on panels that combineto make a six-fold screen, aform of tTaditional Japaneseart your students will studyin the next activity.

4. Review what studentslearned about both scenes byobserving the paintings. Howwould they characterize the

9

daily lives of the peoplesdepicted? How are the twoscenes alike or different? Askyour students to considerwhether paintings are goodsources for clues to anotherculture. They will probablyconclude that paintings arevaluable sources of informa-tion. If they do not note anylimitations of paintings asinformation sources, be sureto stress that paintings cap-ture only a single moment intime, in a particular place,and may express only theviewpoint of the artist. Havestudents create a list of ques-tions they have about thelives of the people depictedfor which the paintings donot provide answers. Whatdo the paintings tell us aboutlife in Japan and Americatoday? You may also wishto emphasize that we canmisinterpret what we see.Conclude the activity byasking students what othersources of information theymight examine for clues to aculture. Answers will vary,but students will probablyconclude that paintings byother artists, artwork fromdifferent time periods, theaccounts of travelers, andcontact with people fromanother culture mightprovide alternative viewsof that culture.

TEACHER'S NOTES

October MorningDeerfield,Mass.By Willard Leroy Metcalf(American, 1858-1925)Painted in 1917

Oil on canvasFreer Gallery of Art accession

number 18.15466.1 x 73.8 cm (26 x 29")

Country Scenes

Six-fold screenBy Katsushika Hokusai (Japanese,

1760-1849)Ukiyo-e School, Edo period,

nineteenth centuryColor and gold on paperFreer Gallery of Art accession

number 02.48150.9 x 353.1 cm (59 7/16 x 139")

This is a detail from the rightscreen of a pair of screens. Theartist depicts the season, autumn,and the setting, Mount Fuji soar-ing above the clouds in the distantlandscape. On the right side of thescreen Hokusai painted a farmer's

cottage. Four men are rethatching

the roof; additional bundles ofthatch are tacked around thetrees. In the doorway of the housea man steps forward carrying abundle of white cloth that he willbring to the two women who areseated on the ground. The womenare fulling cloth, a method of pro-cessing woolen material with mal-lets to shrink and thicken it.Beside them stands a young boy,

who drags a basket of chestnuts.Beyond this group a man works

busily away deepening thegrooves in a millstone, while twopeddlers with their merchandisepause to chat on the path in theforeground. In the rear of the com-

position a white dog follows twomen who converse on the bridge.

Art to Zoo Japan: Images of a People January/February 1997 7

ACTIVITY PAGE 2A

.

8 Art to Zoo Japan: Images of a People January/February /997

ACTIVITY PAGE 2B

11 Art to Zoo Japan: Images of a People January/February 1997 9

ACTIVITY PAGE 2CObserving a Scene

Directions: Answer the following questions for each painting that you study.

What types of land and water forms (mountains, valleys, rivers, etc.) do you see?

Can you tell what season it is?

What types of buildings do you see? What materials do they appear to be made of?

What types of weather are these buildings best suited for?

Describe the clothing that the people are wearing. What type of weather is it bestsuited for?

Does this painting depict a scene in the United States or Japan? Why?

What are the people doing in the picture?

Is this a scene from the past or the present? Why?

a

10 Att to Zoo Japan: Images of a People January/February 1997

.12

BACKGROUND ESSAY 2

The screen is one of themost distinctive forms ofJapanese art. Uniquely adapt-able to a variety of settings,screens function both as free-standing partitions that definearchitectural space and asformats for the display of art.Many of Japan's greatest artistscreated paintings and calligra-phy for folding screens knownas byobu, which literally meansprotection from wind.

Folding screens ideally suitthe flexible spatial environmentof traditional Japanese architec-ture, in which most interior par-titions consist of sliding panels(fusuma) rather than fixedwalls. Compact when closed,folding screens can be conve-niently moved and extendedfully to provide a stately, formalsetting for a ceremony or offi-cial meeting or arranged toencompass a more intimatespace for serving tea, reading,writing, or sleeping. In tradi-tional Japanese rooms, suchactivities take place on thefloor, which is covered by tata-mi mats. The change of a fewfurnishings can transform thefunction of the room.

Types of ScreensSingle-panel screens

known in Japanese as tsuitateoften stand near entrances tobuildings, in corridors, and insmall spaces. Folding screens(byobu), which range from twoto ten panels, may be opened invarious configurations to definesmaller spaces withina room.

The most common format isthe pair of six-panel screens,each screen measuring aboutone and one-half meters highand about three and one-halfmeters wide (approximatelyfive feet high and about elevenand one-half feet wide). Thedesign of a pair of screens mayform a single compositionwhen the screens stand side byside, but they usually havecomplementary themes, such aslandscapes of the spring andautumn. When screens areintended for audience rooms orceremonial display, the paint-ings usually depict auspicioussubjects denoting dignity andpower, such as pine trees orlions. Such screens aredesigned to be viewed from adistance. Low screens of twopanels, each one-half meter(approximately one and twothirds feet) or more in height,are well suited to small teagatherings or for embellishing aprivate living space. The inti-macy of the space allows view-ers to see art such as calligra-phy, scattered fans, or adetailed painting at close range.

Construction ofJapanese Screens

Like sliding fusuma panels,screens are made of a lattice-work of wood on which largesheets of paper are attached tofrom a taut, continuous surface.Painting and calligraphy forscreens are usually executed onpaper or occasionally on silk.Either material may be paintedin subdued tones of ink or rich-

ly embellished with silver andgold. The whole screen isframed in wood, which may belacquered and embellishedwith metal ornaments.

The nearly invisible systemof paper hinges used to join thepanels to form a folding screenwas invented during theKamakura period (1185-1333).This innovation enhanced theartistic potential of theJapanese screen by providing avisually continuous surface forlarge-scale paintings.

History of Screens in JapanThe first screens used in

Japan, from the seventh to theeighth century, came fromChina and Korea. Later,screens were mde in Japan.

Laborious and expensive toproduce, screen paintings wereoften commissioned bypatrons who expressed theirartistic preferences throughtheir choice of subjects andstyles. Monochromatic inkpainting, initially inspired byChinese paintings, became animportant style in Japanesescreen painting beginning inthe fourteenth century.

The large, continuous for-mat of screens is especiallysuited to brilliant designsusing color, often embellishedwith gold and silver. Gold leaf,which came into extensive useduring the sixteenth century,covers the surface of some ofthe most magnificent screens.This translucent material softlyreflects the muted light withintraditional Japanese rooms,

13

where the effect of the gold ismore subtle than it appears inmodern, artificial lighting.

The stability and prosperityof the Edo period (1615-1868)encouraged artistic innovation,stimulated by the emergenceof new patrons from the mer-chant class.

Themes of Screen PaintingLandscapes of the four sea-

sons or of spring and autumnhave been popular themes inJapanese screen painting sincethe fourteenth century. Alsocommon are narrative themesbased on Chinese or Japaneseliterature. Calligraphy ofJapanese or Chinese poetryappealed to the tastes of edu-cated patrons. Tigers, dragons,popular deities, and evenghosts appear on screens.Beginning in the sixteenthcentury, screens depictedgenre scenes of picnics andother activities in the citiesand countryside.

An indispensable elementof the daily environment ofprivileged Japanese house-holds, Japanese screens, likemany of the most highlyesteemed Japanese arts, hadboth a practical and an aesthet-ic value. Among the most pre-cious treasures of private andpublic art collections, screenpaintings represent some ofthe most brilliant artisticachievements of Japan.

Adapted from an essay inA Closer Look: JapaneseScreens by Ann Yonemura,Freer Gallery of Art.

Art to Zoo Japan: Images of a People January/February 1997 11

LESSON PLANStep 3

JAPANESE SCREENS

Objectives

Identify the uses ofscreens.

Create a miniature foldingscreen inspired by Japaneseexamples.

Materials

Copies of Take-HomePages 1 and 2.

Construction paper orplain stock paper.

Photographs or slides ofJapanese screens (seeResources page for referencebooks).

Pens, pencils, or markers.

Subjects

Art, social studies

Procedure

1. Tell your students thatthey'll now be studying theunique art form of Japanesescreens. Give each student acopy of Take-Home Page 1and ask them to carefullystudy the photograph. (Youmay also wish to displayother screen images from ref-erence books.) Be sure tostress that the type of screen(byobu) reproduced on Take-Home Page 1 comprises aseries of six folding, paper

panels framed in wood andmeasuring about one andone-half meters (about fivefeet) high and three and one-half meters (about ten andone-half feet) wide. Ask yourstudents to think how suchlarge, lightweight, and highlydecorative folding objectsmight have been used in atraditional Japanese home.Explain that a traditionalJapanese home had only oneor two stories, no basement,and relatively little floorspace. Stress that this limitedarea often had to serve as aliving room, dining room,and bedroom. (If studentsneed a further hint, ask themto think about how a schoolgymnasium or auditoriummight be temporarily con-verted for use by a number ofdifferent classes.) Answersmay vary, but students willprobably conclude thatscreens served as partitionsbetween functional areas in atraditional Japanese homeand could be moved easily todivide existing space in avariety of ways according todifferent circumstances.

2. Using the photographon Take-Home Page 1 andadditional images from refer-ence books, direct your stu-dents to look carefully at thethemes depicted in screenartwork. Ask them to

12 Art to Zoo Japan: Images of a People January/February 1997

describe generally what theysee. Emphasize that screensoften show seasonal land-scapes and stories from liter-ature, as well as tigers, drag-ons, deities, and even ghosts.

3. Give each student acopy of Take-Home Page 2.Tell your students that they'llnow make their own minia-ture screen, inspired by theJapanese art form. Ask themto follow the directions onTake-Home Page 2 to createa miniature four-panelscreen. Stress that they candecorate their screens in anumber of different ways(e.g., a story could be toldacross the four panels, eachpanel could feature a differ-ent decorative design, or thepanels could depict a com-posite landscape).

4. After students havecompleted Take-Home Page2, ask them to explain theirdesigns to the class. Whatdid they depict in theirscreens? Where would theyplace their screen (e.g., in adining area, living room, orbedroom) if it was as large asa traditional byobu?

14

TEACHEWS NOTES

Cherry Blossoms at Ueno Park

Six-fold screen

By Hishikawa Moronobu

(1618-94)

Ukiyo-e School, Edo period,

seventeenth century

Color and gold powder on paper

Freer Gallery of Art accession

number F06.267

180 x 382.2 cm (70 7/8 x 150

1/2")

This scene occurs in Edo, the site

of modern Tokyo. The subject of

the left screen is cherry blossom

viewing and picnicking near the

Kan'eiji Temple at Ueno. At the

far right is the Kuro-mon, the

black gate that until modern times

stood in from of the site of the

present-day Tokyo National

Museum. The Shinobazu pond

appears in the foreground, and an

array of pilgrims, picnickers, and

revelersthe townspeople of

Edooccupies the landscape. On

the pair of screens the artist has

painted some 394 residents of

Edo, with almost no repeating of

clothing patterns.

TAKE-HOME PAGE 1What Is a JapaneseScreen?

To the teacherDuplicate this page

for students.Use with Lesson

Plan Step 3.

Publication of Art to Zoo ismade possible through thegenerous support of the BrotherInternational Corporation.

brOther

WV-41470KilltROKistrAlialWISCW4P1741`.;:* , A, 14

TRABAJO PARAHACER EN LA CASA 1iliué es un biombojaponés?Al maestro (a)

Copie esta pagina paralos alumnos.

Use la con el tercer pasodel plan de la lección.

Esta publicación ha sidoposible gracias al generosoaporte de la BrotherInternational Corporation.

f '6C**4$47.115.101nOVACTOK7 Ir., As:1W Tiolet

Japanese screens aresturdy, lightweightwood panels that arecovered with paper andconnected by nearlyinvisible hinges. Thereare single-panel screens,but usually you will findpanels in pairs. You canfind two or four panelstogether (but not threeor five).

15

Biombos japoneses sonpaneles de madera,firmes pero livianos,cubiertos de papel yunidos con bisagras casiinvisibles.

Hay biombos de unsolo panel, pero usual-mente, los biombosestan hechos de pares depaneles. Hay biombosde dos o cuatro paneles,pero nunca de tres ocinco paneles.

Art to Zoo Japan: Images of a People January/February 1997 13

TAKE-HOME PAGE 2How Is a ScreenDecorated?

To the teacher

Duplicate this pagefor students.

Use with LessonPlan Step 3.

Pictures or words on ascreen often have spe-cial meaning. Forexample,Pine trees = DignityBamboo = PurityLions = Power

You might also seesome calligraphy.This beautiful writ-ing may be the artist'sname or a poem.

Publication of Art to Zoo ismade possible through thegenerous support of the BrotherInternational Corporation.

brother

Ilustraciones y pal-abras en un biombo

frecuentementetienen un significa-

* do especial. Porejemplo, arboles

de pino significan dig-nidad; bambü signifi-ca pureza; y leones

11,4 significan fuerza o0 poder.

Uate En algunos biom-

bos se puede vercaligrafia. Esta bellaescritura puede ser unpoema o el nombredel artista.

Make your own screen

Take a sheet of construction paper (or plain paper)and fold it in half once, then twice more. Thisprocess will give you an evennumber of screen panels.Decorate your screen withscenes from your favorite story,a decorative design, or a seasonallandscape.

14 Art to Zoo Japan: Images of a People January/February 1997

TRABAJO PARA HACEREN LA CASA 2zCiimo se decoraun biombo?Al maestro (a)

Copie esta pagina paralos alumnos.

Usela con el tercer pasodel plan de la lecci6n.

Esta publicación ha sidoposible gracias al generosoaporte de la BrotherInternational Corporation.

The changing seasonsare often depicted onscreens. Look forimages of spring, sum-mer, autumn, and win-ter. Silver and gold on ascreen shimmer andreflect light in a dimroom.

Frecuentemente se veilustrado el cambio de lasestaciones. Busca imd-genes de primavera, vera-no, otoilo e invierno.Pinturas doradas yplateadas en un biombobrillan tenuemente yreflej an luz.

Haz Tu Propio Biombo

Toma una hoja de papel, dóblala por la mitad yvuelve a doblarla dos veces más. Esto te dud un

biombo con pares de paneles.Decora tu biombo con ecsenas

de tu cuento favorito, condiseiios decorativos o con

un paisaje estacional.

1 i;

RESOURCES

BOOKS AND TEACHING Art/Arthur M. Sackler Gallery, ELECTRONIC RESOURCES PHOTOGRAPHS

GUIDES

Baker, Joan Stanley. Japanese

Smithsonian Institution,Washington, DC 20560.

A good starting point forteachers or others interested inexploring Asian resources on

Freer Gallery of ArtSmithsonian Institution

Art. New York: Thames and Masterpieces of Chinese and the Internet is the Asia Society ART TO ZOO

Hudson, 1991. Japanese Art: Freer Gallery World Wide Web site at Art to Zoo is a publication of

Doi, Tsugiyoshi. MomoyamaDecorative Painting. Trans.Edna B. Crawford. New York:

of Art Handbook Washington,D.C.: Smithsonian Institution,1976.

http:llwww.askasia/org.

The Smithsonian Institution'sFreer Gallery of Art hosts

the Office of Elementary andSecondary Education,Smithsonian Institution,Washington, DC 20560.

Weatherhill, 1977. Murase, Miyeko. an informative WorldMasterpieces of Japanese Wide Web site at Content Developer

Grilli, Elise. The Art of the Screen Painting. New York: http:llwww.sledu/asia. Alan SmigielskiJapanese Screen. New York George Braziller, 1990.

and Tokyo: Walker- Teachers can find a represen- Editor

Weatherhill, 1970. tative sampling of traditional Douglas CaseySLIDES, PRINTS AND Japanese art by visiting the

Kalman, Bobbie. Japan the POSTERS Tokugawa Art Museum at Translator

Culture. The Land, People,and Culture series. New York:

Slide, prints, and posters ofmany of the images in this

http://www.cjn.or.jp/tokugawa/index.html.

Sarita Rodriguez

Crabtree Publishing, 1989. issue can be obtained by writ-ing to Museum Shop, Freer

Designer

Karlic Design Associates, LIELyons, Nancy Hague, and Gallery of Art, Smithsonian ACKNOWLEDGMENTS Baltimore, MarylandSarah Ridley. Japan: Images Institution, Washington, DC

and Words: An 20560. A $4.50 shipping and Freer Gallery of Art/ Publications Director

Interdisciplinary Unit forSixth-Grade Art and Language

handling fee will be added tothe cost of each order.

Arthur M. Sackler Gallery: Michelle Knovic Smith

Arts Classes. Washington,D.C.: Freer Gallery of Art,Smithsonian Institution, 1994.

VIDEO RESOURCES

Faces of Japan, a five-pro-

Sarah RidleyAssistant Head of Education ART TO ZOO ONLINE

This publication is alsoThis kit brings the Freer gram PBS series on contem- Nancy Hague Lyons available electronically overGallery's world-renowned col-lection of Japanese paintings

porary Japan, is available forsecondary schools. Write to

Freer Teacher Associate,1993-94

the Internet (anonymous ftpto educate.si.edu and the

into your classroom. The pack-et includes six full-color

Pacific Mountain Network,12596 West Bayaud, Suite Marie Theriault

World Wide Web athttp:lleducate.si.edu/

posters, six slides, and six 8 x 215, Lakewood, CO 80228. ImaginAsia coordinator art-to-zoo/azindex.htm) and10", black-and-white pho- $125.00. America Online (keywordtographs. View the images at Ann Yonemura SMITHSONIAN). Issuesthe Freer/Sackler World Wide Video Visits: Japan: The Assistant Curator, starting with spring 1993 areWeb site at Island Empire stresses the Japanese Art part of this online collection.http://www.si.edu/asia. To connections and contrasts Look for more information onorder the kit, send a check or between traditional and Waki Murayama Smithsonian electronic educa-school purchase order for modern Japan. Available from Schools Program Intern tional services and publications$28.50 payable to "Education,Freer/Sackler) to School andFamily Programs, Education

Library Video Company, P.O.Box 1110, Department AR,Bala Cynwyd, PA 19004;

in future issues of Art to Zoo.

Department, Freer Gallery of (800) 843-3620. $24.95.

-17 Art to Zoo Japan: Images of a People January/February 1997 15

SUBSCRIBE TOArt to Zoo

For a free subscription to Art to Zoo, make a copy of this form and send it to Smithsonian Office of

Elementary and Secondary Education / Art to Zoo, Arts and Industries Building 1163, MRC 402,

Washington, DC 20560. Please print clearly.

Name

Address

ZIP

DirectionsCheck ONE of the following boxes:

0 This is my school (or other organization) address. LI This is my home address.

SMITHSONIANOffice of Elementary andSecondary

V4Cation

Arts and Industries Building 1163MRC 402Washington, DC 20560

Official BusinessPenalty for Private Use, $300

18

Bulk RatePostage and Fees PaidSmithsonian InstitutionG-94

[zi

LI

U.S. Department of EducationOffice of Educational Research and Improvement (OERI)

National Library of Education (NLE)Educational Resources Information Center (ERIC)

NOTICE

REPRODUCTION BASIS

®

ERIC

This document is covered by a signed "Reproduction Release(Blanket) form (on file within the ERIC system), encompassing allor classes of documents from its source organization and, therefore,does not require a "Specific Document" Release form.

This document is Federally-funded, or carries its own permission toreproduce, or is otherwise in the public domain and, therefore, maybe reproduced by ERIC without a signed Reproduction Release form(either "Specific Document" or "Blanket").

EFF-089 (9/97)