Category Archives: Culture
A Love of All Things Asian: The Freer Gallery’s Peacock Room
I tend to think of the influence of Asian art on Western design as being a recent trend but in fact it has had a significant impact for over 150 years.
Katsushika Hokusai, South Wind, Clear Sky (1830-1833)
Photo: The British Museum
In the 1860’s, Japan opened up to international trade, which provided Europe with greater access to the Ukiyo-e woodblock prints that were gaining popularity in France. The style of artists like Katsushika Hokusai was completely different from the realism found in traditional European painting at the time.
Mary Cassatt, Maternal Caress (1891)
Photo: The Metropolitan Museum of Art
Artists of the Impressionist and later movements emulated the clean lines and bold colours of the Japanese masters, as well as the scenes of everyday life and landscapes.
Vincent Van Gogh (after Eisen), La Courtisane (1887)
Photo: Hokusai Online
People in Paris and London went crazy for all things Japanese, including ceramics, bronzes, and clothing items like kimonos and fans. As interest in the East grew, so too did an interest in the art of other cultures, like China.
19th Century Dress Made from a Kimono
Photo: The Dreamtress
Perhaps the greatest example of this fascination with incorporating elements of Asian culture in 19th century design is The Peacock Room. Originally created for British shipping magnate Frederick Leyland to showcase his Chinese porcelain collection, it was redecorated in blue and gold by James McNeill Whistler in the 1870’s to reflect the patterns of Leyland’s ceramics. Whistler even installed one of his Japanisme paintings, The Princess from the Land of Porcelain, above the mantle.
The Peacock Room
Photo: Picturing AmericaMIAC
In 1908, Charles Lang Freer purchased the room and it shipped to America and installed in his house in Detroit. Like Leyland, he used the space to display his collection of Asian and Islamic ceramics.
The Peacock Room
Photo: The Freer Gallery
The room has once again been transported, this time to the Freer Gallery in Washington, D.C., complete with its ceramics just as it stood in Detroit. I recently visited the Freer to view its collection of Islamic art but ended up spending almost an hour in this room. I was mesmerized by the rich gold and bluish-green colour scheme; it was both overwhelming and comforting and if I didn’t have a train to catch, I could have spent the rest of the day there taking in the many wondrous details.
The Peacock Room
Photo: Smithsonian Studio Art Blog
Since then, I have found myself a little obsessed with this space, wondering if a modernized version might be possible. Peacock blue has been a popular paint colour in recent years, and that would be the easiest fix, with added touches of gold and a few Asian accessories.
Photo: House of Turquoise via Vignette Design
If you want to go really bold, you could use vintage-style wallpaper, like this damask print.
Photo: Kaboodle
I think the Victorian horror vacui wallpaper/painting is a little much (and who can afford to have someone like Whistler come and paint their living room?) but a screen with a peacock design would help to evoke its spirit.
Photo: Whitehaven Interiors
Perhaps the easiest way to replicate the Japanisme décor of the original room is with groupings of Asian ceramics or other collectables.
Photo: Greentea Design
These don’t need to be precious antiques and in fact I think it would be far more interesting to use modern items, perhaps set on gold lacquered shelves against a bold blue background.
Photo: Greentea Design
If you are in Washington, I urge you to visit The Peacock Room at the Freer Gallery. If you can’t, you can at least take a virtual tour online. But what I would really like to see is your interpretation of this Western take on Eastern style. Have you mixed East and West in your décor?
George Takei, Social Media Maven
You may know him as Lieutenant Sulu from the original Star Trek, but lately George Takei is making news with his social media savvy. With more than 1.8 million fans on Facebook alone he’s taking over the Internet.
Whether it’s his humour or social activism that draws you in, his place in your newsfeed is sure to brighten your day. Here’s but a small sampling of all things Takei:
George, with his husband Brad, was recently in Toronto to receive an honour from the Japanese Canadian Cultural Centre at the Sakura Ball for his activism work. At 75 George is busy with advocacy, focusing both on the fight for Gay rights and strengthening Japanese-American relations following his personal story of internment during the Second World War.
image via Legit Print
He’s parlayed this dark and under-explored time in history into a new musical entitled Allegiance. Allegiance follows the Omura family from their home in California to the Heart Mountain internment camp in Wyoming. The family’s conflict with their experience of the war and internment reflects the broader conflict felt by the country as a whole. Allegiance opens at The Old Globe Theatre in San Diego September 19, 2012 and then hopes to move to Broadway. You can learn more about it here, including how to lend your support.
There is something about George’s unpretentious sophistication, his humility and humour that attracts folks (that and the whole Sulu thing). But it’s his social conscious and commitment to equality that makes more than 1.8 millions people think a little harder on Facebook.
All images via George Takei’s Facebook page unless otherwise noted.
Ikebana for Mother’s Day
Katsuko Thielke via ikebana.org
Flowers are a staple of Mother’s Day, but before you stop by the florist for a bouquet consider giving her a true work of floral art with an ikebana arrangement. For those who don’t know, ikebana is a specific type of Japanese floral arranging that aims to bring humanity and nature together. Ikebana is an art form that is exceptionally powerful because of its impermanence.
Another idea would be to get together with mom so you can both try your hand at Ikebana inspired floral arrangements. Gather the materials beforehand, purchase some wonderful teas and spend the afternoon centreing yourselves while creating flower arrangements.
It takes years to learn and master the art of ikebana but here are a few of the basic principles and materials you will need to get started.
A few popular styles of ikebana are:
Rikka- meaning standing flowers.
Nagiere- a non structured design the often features a tight bundle of stems and an asymmetrical triangular shape.
Seika- where three main branches represent ‘ten’ heaven, ‘chi’ earth and ‘jin’ human.
Jiyuka- a free form design that often utilizes materials other than flowers.
This website gives a good overview of the various styles with pictorial examples.
Japanese Flower Vase from Doug Smith Pottery
Materials:
Container- the container you choose should be cohesive with the type of arrangement you’re trying to create. Don’t be afraid to use an unconventional object as a vase.
Kenzan- also know as a ‘floral frog’, is a small disk with pins protruding from it that sits at the bottom of your container. It will hold the stems or branches in place which will help you achieve your desired shape for the arrangement.
Flowers, Grasses, Vines and Branches- Really any kind of plant life can be used, but some popular choices are orchids, long grasses, cherry blossoms and branches of Japanese Maple.
Small Garden Shears- a pair of small pointed garden shears will be helpful for trimming and cutting plants.
ikebana by junko
When you’re finished creating your masterpieces mom and you can exchange them so you each have a memento of the day.
Happy Friday everyone and Happy Mother’s Day to all the mom’s out there!
The History of the Step Chest
When they first encountered the step chest, or Kaiden Dansu, in the 19th century it was love at first sight for travelers from the West. It’s such an iconic piece of Japanese furniture, with an instantly recognizable shape. Their asymmetry; the many drawers and sliding doors; the intricate Japanese joinery techniques that ensure they’re built to last: Step chests strike a perfect balance between art and design, form and function.
Image via Pinterest from Picasaweb
These beautiful solid wood pieces first appeared during the late 1700s custom built by the local carpenter for stores and loft spaces in Japan. They were built to serve the practical purpose of acting as both staircase and storage. These step chests are constructed in three parts that can be arranged in various configurations.
Historically, building step chests in multiple parts served a couple of key purposes: it allowed the pieces to be easily transported, carried on shoulder poles, from one place to another (tansu were generally considered fancy storage boxes); but it also allowed the furniture to be reconfigured depending on a space’s needs.
Greentea Design’s 3D Step Chest Guide
And the need, from time to time, was to screw the taxman. Space has always been a hot commodity in Japan. And as the story goes, these step chests would function as staircases to the upper level of a loft, where you’d find a family’s living space. The government at the time taxed owners on their livable floor space only, so when the tax inspector came around, the step chests would be reconfigured – poof! The staircase was gone! – and the owner would claim the loft above was soley used for storage – with no permanent access to the space – and therefore untaxable. This worked for a while until, predictably, that loophole was closed.
Today, using traditional building techniques, Greentea Design has a range of step chests that fit beautifully in modern spaces. With two-sided design, they function as room dividers and offer loads of storage that can be customized to your needs. These are heirloom quality pieces, the unique focal point of any room, that imbue a space with a little culture and a little history.
Cocktail Culture
It’s Foodie Tuesday!
When I was a bartender in the 1980’s, cocktails were brightly coloured, syrupy-sweet concoctions finished off with a festive umbrella. It didn’t take much talent to serve drinks, unless you wanted to add some flair to your technique like Tom Cruise in the eponymous movie.
But just as food has undergone a revolution in the last few decades, so has the development of the cocktail. Bartenders are taking cues from chefs to create well-balanced libations with ingredient lists that often read like recipes from restaurants and include herbs, fruits and vegetables, and even bacon.
(Please Don’t Tell’s Benton’s Old Fashioned, Photo: Cocktail Revival)
Bars like Please Don’t Tell in New York created truly individual drinks, like the Bacon-Infused Old Fashioned. Ironically, while the flavour profiles of these cocktails are extremely modern (and follow similar food trends), many are based on pre-Prohibition era favourites, like manhattans, gimlets, and punch bowls (nothing like your mother’s punch, I promise you). And keeping with the history of these drinks, many modern cocktail bars are set up like private clubs, such as the Toronto Temperance Society (which has a $285 membership fee) or 1920’s speakeasys, hidden away from the general public.
(Bar Chef’s Vanilla Hickory Smoked Manhattan Photo: Intelligent Bartender)
Hunting down these places is often well worth it, as much to experience the mixologists’ creations as the atmosphere. Take Bar Chef’s molecular menu, which reads like the alcoholic version of a Top Chef episode; their Vanilla Hickory Smoked Manhattan arrives under glass, the namesake smoke infusing the drink before your eyes. But craftsmanship like this comes at a price- most cocktail bars charge at least 15 dollars per drink and the aforementioned manhattan is a whopping 45 bucks!
(Photo: Atomic Books)
To recreate these artistic concoctions at home, pick up a copy of The American Cocktail which includes 50 recipes from some of the best bartenders in the country. Don’t worry, none of them involve trapping smoke under glass, though the ingredient lists can get a little long. The results are worth it though and your guests will be much more impressed than if you poured a boring old gin and tonic.
(Photo: Outblush)
Most of the recipes include spirits that are readily available in liquor stores and produce from your standard grocery store (or even better, local farmers’ market). In some cases, specialty ingredients are called for, like flavoured bitters. Fee Brothers is a popular brand with a wide assortment of flavours to enhance traditional cocktails or to create your own masterpiece. The more adventurous home-based foodie can even make homemade bitters.
(Tequila and Sage Smash, Photo: Huffington Post)
Creating cocktails like this can be an expensive proposition, so you might want to start slow by brightening the flavour of more traditional drinks with herbs. The Huffington Post provides a list of 5 herbaceous libations, including the simply delicious Tequila and Sage Smash.
(Food & Wine Cocktail App, Photo: iTunes)
Interested in keeping up with cocktail culture? Check out Imbibe, a magazine which provides the latest information on “liquid culture.” Or get Food & Wine’s new Cocktail app, which lets you search recipes by the alcohol that you have on hand or hunt down the best bars to try the latest and greatest cocktails in your area. Cheers!
