Huang Goodman · Art Forgotten

Art Forgotten

Art from public museum collections. A mismatched real Japanese law, and some other factoids.

Every object, image and description comes from the museum's own catalogue record, and every object links to its original. Japanese records are machine-translated into English; the museum's Japanese is kept beside the translation because it is the authoritative form. Each law carries its official number and links to e-Gov 法令検索, the Japanese government's statute database.

Cherry Blossoms in the Wind
{Cherry Blossoms in the Wind · Utagawa Toyokuni (Japanese, 1769–1825) · late 1790s · Cleveland Museum of Art · CC0}

Highly regarded for his images of actors, Toyokuni was also known for his prints of beauties that demonstrate his brilliant skill in composition. This triptych depicts a joyful hanami (flower viewing) scene in spring. One woman stands on a huge wine bottle, while another one sits on a samurai’s shoulder; in both scenes, the women are tying prayers or poems on tree branches. On the left, two servants protect a well-dressed lady from the wind. Their fluttering, long-sleeved kimonos capture the wind’s movement. Standing in a triad, the three groups form a stable, harmonic composition against the cherry blossom background.

View the original at Cleveland Museum of Art →
The law
景観法
Landscape Act
平成十六年法律第百十号 · Act No. 110 of 2004

Article 1 states the aim as a beautiful and dignified national land, and it covers not only cities but farming, mountain and fishing villages. Inside a landscape planning area, Article 16 requires advance notification of new building, extension, rebuilding, relocation, and any repair or alteration that changes the exterior. Landscape Districts go further and impose direct restrictions on the form and design of buildings.

The cool part. Read Article 16 to the end of the sentence. A change of colour is listed alongside new construction as an act you must notify. Repainting your building is, in law, the same category of event as putting up a new one. This is the machinery behind the muted shopfronts of Kyoto. The brown coffee-shop sign is not a marketing choice, it is compliance.

Verify at e-Gov 法令検索 →

Use it The border is the idea. Use it as an edge treatment and leave the centre empty.

Description source: museum curator text — not generated