Exhibitions: "Japanese Meiji Era Bronze" Exhibition in Moscow

On March 12, 2014, the State Historical Museum (Moscow) presented the "Japanese Meiji Era Bronze" exhibition from the museum collection and the collection of A. G. Egorov.

The exhibition continues to show the artifacts from the private collections and presents a collection of Japanese animalistic bronze sculpture of late XIX - early XX century. Meiji era (1868-1912 years) is a unique historical period of profound reforms and changes, when, in a very short time, closed feudal country has emerged from isolation and become a major world power. Emperor Meiji Mutsuhito took consisting of two characters name - "a light" and "a rule", and his enlightened government initiated a fundamental transformation in science and art.

Japanese small forms bronze sculpture belongs to the amount of things that precisely define the national traditions, aesthetics, everyday lifestyle of the country and meet the Japanese expectations of beauty.

The tradition of collecting Japanese bronze sculpture developed in Russia in the late XIX century, largely owing to the collecting activities of P. I. Shchukin, P. I. Kharitonenko, A. A. Brokkara. The contemporary collecting of rare specimens of Japanese bronze casting is a continuation of this tradition and a clear evidence of persistent interest in the arts and culture of Japan.

The demonstration of rare in its entirety and diversity collections of A. G. Egorov gave cause for showing the Japanese monuments of bronze casting from the museum collection. These items well complement the exhibition and allow viewers to get the impression of the single artists’ works entirely.

The collection of Japanese bronze in the Museum’s of History Metal Department of counts 35 items, containing the vases, planters and statuettes. The collection began to take shape in the 1920s. First Japanese bronze artifacts came from the Stroganov School of Industrial Art, and in 1938 from the Polytechnic Museum. Later relocations from the government institutions have enriched the collection.

The exhibition features 14 Japanese Meiji Era bronze casting’s artifacts; all the items are displayed for the first time.

The exhibition runs until June 30, 2014.