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This landmark exhibition takes a fresh look at the art of Japan’s Meiji era (1868–1912), four remarkable decades that propelled the country into the modern era.

Comprising nearly 150 artworks—including paintings, prints, photographs, sculptural works, and objects in various media, such as enamel, lacquer, embroidery, and textiles—the exhibition presents some of the finest examples of Meiji period artworks in American collections, both public and private. Organized around time-honored Japanese motifs, such as the sea and nature, Buddhist deities, and mythical animals, Meiji Modern highlights these themes as they are transformed with the introduction of newly imported techniques, materials, and audiences. The exhibition historically situates the period and transports the public to the latter 19th century—a time of political upheaval, imperial expansion, economic transformation and social unrest worldwide.

Meiji Modern emphasizes modern Japanese artists’ engagement with both European and Asian trends and the concurrent invention of “classical Japan” as a category. Showcasing Japan as a case of nonwestern modernity, the exhibition also addresses issues surrounding art and identity resonant with audiences today.

Top: Watanabe Nobukazu (1872–1944), Bronze Statue of SaigōTakamori in Ueno Park, Tokyo, 1899. Ukiyo-e woodblock-printed vertical ōban triptych, ink and color on paper, overall: 14 1/2 × 28 in. (36.8 × 71.1 cm), each sheet: 14 1/2 × 9 3/4 in. (36.8 × 24.8 cm). Jordan Schnitzer Museum of Art, University of Oregon, Eugene, Gift of Irwin Lavenberg, The Lavenberg Collection of Japanese Prints, 2021:36.453a–c.

Image: Watanabe Nobukazu (1872–1944), Bronze Statue of SaigōTakamori in Ueno Park, Tokyo, 1899. Ukiyo-e woodblock-printed vertical ōban triptych, ink and color on paper, overall: 14 1/2 × 28 in. (36.8 × 71.1 cm), each sheet: 14 1/2 × 9 3/4 in. (36.8 × 24.8 cm). Jordan Schnitzer Museum of Art, University of Oregon, Eugene, Gift of Irwin Lavenberg, The Lavenberg Collection of Japanese Prints, 2021:36.453a–c.