japan changes too

david asked here about the changes that went in the opposite direction. i don't know about that as much, but see that there's an exhibition at boston's mfa that bridges the gap somewhat:

Tradition and Transformation:
Japanese Art 1860-1940
Friday, January 27, 2006 -
Thursday, November 9, 2006

"Immediately following the arrival of Commodore Matthew Perry’s “black ships” in 1853, Japan cast aside its self-imposed isolation from the international community and embarked upon an unprecedented program of modernization. The nation, under the leadership of Emperor Meiji, embraced not only Western social and political institutions but also artistic ones. For some artists however, the pace of change was too sudden and they reasserted the importance of traditional themes and styles. This exhibition in the Japanese Painting Galleries explores the creative tensions that often led to such exciting syntheses of East and West."

this was called the taisho period, and there was an exhibition circulating last year called "taisho chic" the catalogue of which is still available. (the most images i could find from that show were here. it's a pdf.) i also found a gallery (where i found the above image) that seems to have a number of interesting pieces from this period.

the question was also somewhat addressed here.

(Miki Suizan, Fair Wind, 1933)