A complete guide book of KOMAINU, the mysterious and unique art of Japan. Includes numerous pictures (Book1 contains about 200 pictures).
Flexible layout for any gear, so as to enjoy color pictures in a smart phone.
The komainu is sometimes called “lion dog” in English, but the term is hardly likely to invoke any particular image in the reader's mind. Its origins are the lion statues of China, but it developed along a different artistic and cultural plane in Japan. Komainu statues are a familiar sight for the Japanese, but in regard to their cultural value, they are just as ignorant as the rest of the world.
Unlike the sculpted images of the Buddha, stone komainu statues have been unjustly ignored. Compared with clay figures and carvings in wood, stone statues require much more skill and patience to create. It is puzzling, to say the least, that they have been so little appreciated. We tend to think that artists create wooden sculptures and plaster figures, while stone carvings are the efforts of artisans. The fact probably has some bearing on such attitude.
More and more people, however, have been captivated by the appealing komainu statues. There are now quite a number in Japan who declare komainu appreciation as their pet hobby. This book has been compiled in an effort to convey to readers worldwide the wonders of komainu art and culture.
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Contents of the series
■Vol.1 (this book)
1 In Variety, Komainu Are Tops
1-1 Just Look at These Faces!
1-2 A Varied Lot
2 Origin of Komainu and Primitive “Hajime” Komainu
2-1 Origin of Komainu
2-2 “Hajime” Komainu
2-3 Komainu at the Nikko Toshogu Shrine
■Vol.2
3 The History and Various Styles of Komainu
3-1 Echizen Kamuro (Shakudani Stone Komainu)
3-2 Izumo (Tango)
3-3 Edo Lions and Naniwa Komainu
3-4 “Mani-Ball” (Tenjin)
3-5 Gokoku
3-6 Bizen (Inbe Miyajishi)
3-7 Chinese Lions
3-8 Modern Okazaki Komainu (Sanshu)
3-9 Others
■Vol.3
4 The Wolf: Another Kind of Komainu
4-1 Komainu and Wolves
4-2 Japanese dogs and Others
5 War and Komainu
6 Komainu as Works of Art
6-1 Stonecutters Struggle Against Copies
6-2 TheDecline of Komainu Culture
■Vol.4
7 Divine Komainu: The Incredible Story of Rihei, Torakichi and Wahei
7-1 The Story Begins with a Takato Stonecutter
7-2 Komatsu Torakichi Nobutaka: Indomitable and Rebellious
7-3 The Flying Lion
7-4 Kobayashi Wahei, the Late Bloomer
7-5 Divine Komainu
Flexible layout for any gear, so as to enjoy color pictures in a smart phone.
The komainu is sometimes called “lion dog” in English, but the term is hardly likely to invoke any particular image in the reader's mind. Its origins are the lion statues of China, but it developed along a different artistic and cultural plane in Japan. Komainu statues are a familiar sight for the Japanese, but in regard to their cultural value, they are just as ignorant as the rest of the world.
Unlike the sculpted images of the Buddha, stone komainu statues have been unjustly ignored. Compared with clay figures and carvings in wood, stone statues require much more skill and patience to create. It is puzzling, to say the least, that they have been so little appreciated. We tend to think that artists create wooden sculptures and plaster figures, while stone carvings are the efforts of artisans. The fact probably has some bearing on such attitude.
More and more people, however, have been captivated by the appealing komainu statues. There are now quite a number in Japan who declare komainu appreciation as their pet hobby. This book has been compiled in an effort to convey to readers worldwide the wonders of komainu art and culture.
━━━━━━━━━
━━━━━━━━━
Contents of the series
■Vol.1 (this book)
1 In Variety, Komainu Are Tops
1-1 Just Look at These Faces!
1-2 A Varied Lot
2 Origin of Komainu and Primitive “Hajime” Komainu
2-1 Origin of Komainu
2-2 “Hajime” Komainu
2-3 Komainu at the Nikko Toshogu Shrine
■Vol.2
3 The History and Various Styles of Komainu
3-1 Echizen Kamuro (Shakudani Stone Komainu)
3-2 Izumo (Tango)
3-3 Edo Lions and Naniwa Komainu
3-4 “Mani-Ball” (Tenjin)
3-5 Gokoku
3-6 Bizen (Inbe Miyajishi)
3-7 Chinese Lions
3-8 Modern Okazaki Komainu (Sanshu)
3-9 Others
■Vol.3
4 The Wolf: Another Kind of Komainu
4-1 Komainu and Wolves
4-2 Japanese dogs and Others
5 War and Komainu
6 Komainu as Works of Art
6-1 Stonecutters Struggle Against Copies
6-2 TheDecline of Komainu Culture
■Vol.4
7 Divine Komainu: The Incredible Story of Rihei, Torakichi and Wahei
7-1 The Story Begins with a Takato Stonecutter
7-2 Komatsu Torakichi Nobutaka: Indomitable and Rebellious
7-3 The Flying Lion
7-4 Kobayashi Wahei, the Late Bloomer
7-5 Divine Komainu
