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藝術展覽手冊翻譯(中翻英)之一
十九世紀中葉，鎖國兩百五十多年的日本，面臨西方強國要求開放門戶的武力脅迫，自此，幕府的權勢搖搖欲墜，勤王倒幕的風潮逐漸壯大，由於歐美列強意圖瓜分日本，各自擁護幕府或維新志士，眼看內戰一觸即發。1868年，幕府末代將軍德川慶喜決定以國家為重，一致對外，將大政奉還，於是，明治天皇即位，展開了奠定日本現代化基礎的明治維新。
當時，日本在新舊文化的衝擊中產生了許多變化，日本民族順勢將精湛的傳統技藝，用於藝術創作，發展出更高層次的藝術表現。本次展出的金工、自在、雕刻、漆器、七寶、瓷器、織絨等126組件作品，時代橫跨江戶末期到昭和初期，部份作品出自日本帝室技藝員等名家之手，兼具傳統的細膩巧緻與創新的色彩構圖，將工藝品由「技」昇華為「藝」，充分展現出明治藝術之美。
After 250 years of Locked Country foreign relation policy enacted by Tokugawa Shogunate, Japan began to face the military threats imposed by Western powers in the mid-19th century. As a result, many people demanded Tokugawa to step down and return power to the Emperor while some others urged Tokugawa to remain in power. The divided opinions resulted in many confrontations across Japan. Civil war was soon to erupt. Finally, Tokugawa Yoshinobu, the last Shogun in Japan’s history, decided to return power to the Emperor in order to unite Japan competing against the Western powers. Then, Japan took many modernization initiatives in Meiji Restoration Period.
Many changes took place in Meiji Restoration Period, highlighted by the conflicts between new and old cultures. Japanese applied their technical know-how to arts and had thus improved their art technologies to an unprecedented level. 126 pieces of metalworking, sculptures, lacquers, metals, ceramics and woven velvets exhibited here were produced between late Edo and early Showa Periods. Some artworks were produced by Japan’s royal artists noted for their superb art technologies and fantastic coloring skills. These artworks demonstrate how the artists turned “crafts” into “arts”, revealing the beauty of art in Meiji Period.
