Folding Screen for Tea Ceremony with Six Bird-and-Flower Paintings 1867 - 1899

This "Folding Screen for Tea Ceremony with Six Bird-and-Flower Paintings" was made by Shibata Zeshin during the late Edo or early Meiji period in Japan, a time of immense social and political change as Japan opened to the West. Zeshin was known for revitalizing traditional Japanese art forms, like lacquer painting, while incorporating modern influences. This screen, made for a tea ceremony, reflects the blending of old and new. Traditionally, tea ceremonies were highly ritualized events emphasizing harmony, respect, purity, and tranquility. Zeshin’s screen, with its delicate bird-and-flower paintings, honors this tradition while innovating on it. It is interesting to consider how women were often central to the tea ceremony, both as participants and as subjects within the art displayed. By using traditional motifs, Zeshin connects to centuries of cultural practices, but he also does so with a modern eye, reflecting on the evolving roles and representations of women in a rapidly changing society.