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Exhibition in Southern Taiwan Brings Japan’s Floating World to Life
A major exhibition at the National Palace Museum’s Southern Branch is offering visitors an intimate look at Japan’s Edo-era art, as part of the museum’s 100th anniversary celebrations.
Titled The Beauty of the Floating World in Edo, the exhibition showcases more than 200 works from the 16th to 18th centuries, including folding screens, handscrolls and woodblock prints in the iconic ukiyo-e style. The genre—translated as “pictures of the floating world”—captures scenes of urban life, culture and entertainment from the Edo period.
“For me, [ukiyo-e works] contain certain details,” said Wang Chien-yu, the exhibition’s co-curator. “A lot of those details display all kinds of scenes from people’s lives during the Edo period—all kinds of behavior and actions. It also reflects the aesthetic values of the time as well as people’s perspectives on the world.”
Among the most celebrated pieces is The Great Wave off Kanagawa by Katsushika Hokusai, depicting immense waves curling above small boats with Mount Fuji in the distance. The print has become one of the most recognized images in Japanese art, even appearing on Japan’s newly issued 1,000-yen banknote.
The style’s influence stretches far beyond Japan. “Through trade, Dutch merchants brought Japan’s ukiyo-e works to the West,” said Wang. “Western artists began to take notice of this form of artistic expression. The artistic impression from our woodblock prints appear very rich in color, with unique and striking compositions. In addition, some ukiyo-e works are full of motion and dynamic energy. This style came to influence Western art.”
Even Vincent van Gogh was reportedly moved by the print, once describing the cresting wave as looking like “the claws of an eagle.”
Wang likened the frozen moment in The Great Wave to a still frame from a documentary. “With this artwork it’s like someone pressed ‘pause.’ Like if you were watching the Discovery Channel and when the waves came up, you pressed ‘pause.’ If you were to press ‘play’ again, the waves would come back down.”
The iconic image continues to draw crowds from across the island. “I am from Taipei,” said one visitor. “The Great Wave off Kanagawa by Hokusai is a must-see because it’s come to be seen as something sacred.”
“I was most impressed by The Great Wave off Kanagawa by Hokusai,” said another visitor. “Though it’s just a small print, the level of detail is remarkable. The waves are realistic, it feels as if we're glimpsing a scene from that era.”
Since opening to the public on May 30, the exhibition has drawn more than 50,000 visitors. It will run through the end of August, one of many special events commemorating the museum’s centennial year.
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