The refined cultural production associated with Japan's ruling elites during the early Edo period (1603-1867) is the theme of a new exhibition at the Suntory Museum of Art in Tokyo. As exhibition titles go, Kan'ei Elegance: Edo-Period Court Culture and Enshu, Ninsei, and Tan'yu is not the snappiest, so some unpacking of the ideas it touches on would be in order here. The show focuses on a slice of time early in the Edo period, when a new cycle in the Chinese zodiac established the start of the Kan'ei era, in February 1624. The title places the imperial court at the center of developments, although the culture it promoted was not unconnected with the court of the shogun, who, at the time, wielded ultimate power in Japan. more...

On the elevated track to my left, a driverless Yurikamome train moved soundlessly out of Takeshiba Station on its rubber wheels. The ground shook: a truck hauling a few tons of I-beams trundled past, its destination the massive construction site I saw in front of me, reflected in the wire-mesh glass of a warehouse door. An unassuming poster stuck in a worn metal stand assured me I had the place right -- there was the fern-covered floor of the Quinault Rain Forest, a photo taken by Yoshihiko Ueda last year. Train, truck, trees -- and a brain sifting this three-second riot of information. An instant slightly longer than the sun-dappled measure of time caught on film there in the exhibition announcement, and yet only the latter felt ageless. more...