Kan'ei Elegance: Edo-Period Court Culture and Enshu, Ninsei, and Tan'yu

Zooming in on the Kan'ei era (1624-44), a period that marked the beginning of the long 'Edo peace' after centuries of violent struggle, the Suntory Museum's 'Kan'ei Elegance' highlights how appreciation of the traditional arts and classic culture underwent a revival centred on Kyoto. Waka poetry and the performing arts returned to vogue, with miyabi (refinement, grace) becoming the word to live by in the ancient capital. In Edo, meanwhile, a more straightforward aesthetic developed among the samurai classes. Centring on the works of tea ceremony master Kobori Enshu, potter Nonomura Ninsei and painter Kano Tan'yu, the exhibition explores how these twin streams of high culture came to symbolise a new age and build the foundations for artistic development later in the Edo era.