ALEXCIOUS

Rieko Morita – Recipient of the 'Kyoto Prefecture Award for Cultural Merit'

A selection of designs by the master to whom the painting of the cedar doors of Kinkakuji (Golden Pavilion) in Kyoto was entrusted are used to create this series of elegant Folding Fans.

One of the most prominent female Nihonga* painters in the Kyoto art world, Morita is renowned for her remarkably accurate depictions of seasonal flowers, Maiko (the young ladies who are a symbol of Kyoto's traditional culture), and other exotic women.

*Nihonga

Soon after Japan opened up to the West in 1868, a new world opened up to Japanese painters. In the midst of an atmosphere of rapid change and many new influences, some painters chose to immerse themselves in tradition; some looked almost entirely to the West for inspiration; and still others chose to transcend the past by merging Japanese tradition and Western influences. This last group of artists devoted themselves to the art that became known as ‘Nihonga’. The style selects and incorporates many trends and traditions, from Chinese literati painting to abstract expressionism.