We’re kicking off a whole series of videos
about Japanese Art, and we're going to be
covering everything from Shinto Shrines, to
Superflat.
So let’s start off with the very beginning,
with the Jomon Period.
The Jomon period, meaning “straw rope”,
lasted from 10,000 BCE to 300 BCE.
While the origins of the Jomon people is disputed,
they were nomadic hunter gatherers who later
practiced organized farming and built simple
houses of wood and thatch set into shallow
earthen pits.
They’re thought to be the ancestors of the
Ainu people, who live in Hokkaido.
They’re known for these decorated pots,
which get these patterns by imprinting rope
pattern on to wet clay.
The earliest pottery were smaller, round-bottomed
bowls that may have been used for boiling
or storing food.
They were make from coiled clay and fired
on an open fire.
Later, when the people began following a more
settled pattern of living, the vessels increased
in size and became more elaborate in pattern
and design, for example, this is a Middle-period
jar, which is very ornate style called “flame-wares”
(kaen doki).
The scalloped edge became more exaggerated
with thick groves and curls.
However, by the end of the period, the vessels
become less flamboyant.
The bottoms went from round bottom- which
was suited for burying into the ground- to
flat bottomed, which could be placed on a
flat surface.
They also created clay figurines, called called
dogū (土偶).
The purpose of the Dogu is unknown, but some
scholars theorize that they acted like effigies,
or religious fetishes.
Many appear to be female, with breasts or
a large abdomen, suggesting that they were
associated with pregnancy or considered a
mother goddess.
The Yayoi period, meaning “early spring”
lasted from 300 BCE to 300 CE.
This period was a time of mass migration,
mainly from Korea, and they arrived in northern
Kyushu.
With them, they brought really important knowledge
from abroad, such as: iron, bronze, and wetland
rice cultivation.
As farming spread, land ownership marked one’s
social status, spurring a feudal system that
would dominate in much of Japan’s history.
This agrarian culture lived in permanent,
settled village communities made of thatched
houses.
During the Yayoi period, we see the appearance
of new pottery styles.
These vessels were produced on a potter’s
wheel and fired in kilns, unlike the Jomon
pottery which were made by hand.
They were less ornate, with smoother surfaces
and practical, functional shapes.
Jars were made for storage,
Larger jars for cooking, and
high-footed vessels were used to make offerings.
More elaborate were the bronze ceremonial
bells called dōtaku.
They are often decorated with geometric patterns,
and even some have representations of domesticated
animals and scenes of daily life.
As the Yayoi population grew, society became
more stratified and complex with distinct
social classes.
Prestige objects seem to have been traded
among chiefs and clan-nations developed.
During the 2nd and 3rd centuries, clans fought
among themselves until the 5th century, when
the Yamato clan gained dominance.
The Kofun period, meaning “old tomb”,
lasted from 300 to 552.
Rice cultivation concentrated in what is today
called Kansai, an area that, according to
Chinese records, was called Yamato, ruled
by a female shaman called Queen Himiko.
During this period there were a number of
distinct burial mounds, these megalithic kofun,
or tombs, found in Kyushu and Honshu.
These burial grounds with a keyhole shape
were often surrounded by a moat, and held
a number of sophisticated artifacts, like
bronze mirrors, armour, swords and jewelry.
Unglazed pottery figures called Haniwa were
buried under the circumference.
Haniwa (埴輪), where are clay representations
of animals, objects and humans, and were erected
outside tombs.
Legend has it that Haniwa were created when
when an empresses, who disliked the custom
of servants and maids following their master
in death, ordered clay figures in place of
sacrificing living beings for her burial mound.
However, the earliest haniwa forms found were
simple cylindrical forms, used like stakes
to hold the burial mound in place.
So the authenticity of the story is questionable.
After a while, These plain cylinders were
decorated to various forms, like horses and
human figures, taking on a more religious
or symbolic meaning.
These tombs point to a shift from the tribal
headsmen to more powerful chieftains of larger
domains, as they were are able to raise a
tremendous workforce to build these enormous
mounds.
People likely began to form political alliances
to form a nation.
Excavations of these imperial tombs are forbidden
to this day.
Thanks so much for watching this very first
episode of the Japanese art history series.
I hope you guys enjoyed it, and will tune
in for the following episodes.
If you want to keep watching more, head on
over to the next video, or any of the other
videos listed.
New videos for this series will come out every
other Tuesday.
Thanks so much to our patreon supporters,
you guys really are awesome.
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contribution, please visit Patreon.com/LittleArtTalks.
Thanks so much for watching, and I’ll See
you guys next time!
