Between the Japanese and Chinese missions in the 16th and 17th centuries: The Jesuit influence in the dissemination of a newly created nanban style of lacquer decoration

Description

Through trade and missionary activities, Catholic European presence in Asia promoted adaptation of indigenous crafts to foreign tastes and needs. One result are Luso-Asian items embellished with Asian lacquer. Interregional influences that took place within the framework of the Jesuit missions in Japan and China are illustrated particularly well by religious artefacts that seem to mimic Japanese nanban lacquer patterns but were executed with traditional Chinese techniques and depict Chinese auspicious motifs. Though variously classified in the past, their lacquer decorations can now be consistently assigned to Chinese craftsmen in the service of Catholic Europeans. In-depth, multidisciplinary research with rigorous technological investigation on such lacquered liturgical artifacts revise our understanding and reveal interesting details, pointing to different patterns of circulation and exchange.

Period	13 Feb 2022
Event title	Transcultural Exchanges: Mapping movement of Art, Ideas, And People in Asia
Event type	Conference
Location	Fukuoka, JapanShow on map
Degree of Recognition	International