Porcelain for Princesses: Ceramics in Japan’s Imperial Convents
The temples of Nara and Kyoto include thirteen ‘imperial convents’ (amamonzeki 尼門跡 ). Historically home to nuns from imperial, aristocratic or shogunal families, the collections these convents preserve possess unique insights for the study of court culture in Japan.
Focusing on the collections of Reikanji temple (霊鑑寺) in Kyoto’s Higashiyama district, this talk will examine items of porcelain tableware created for the use of its nuns, and the identities and relationships these objects embody.
Reikanji was established in 1655. It opens its gates during the camellia season when its elegant gardens come into bloom.
Speaker
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Mary RedfernDr Mary Redfern is Curator, Japan, at the Victoria and Albert Museum. After completing her PhD on Meiji-era imperial tableware at University of East Anglia in 2015, Mary worked for 8 years as Curator for East Asia at the Chester Beatty, Dublin. Her publications include Edo in Colour: Prints from Japan’s Metropolis, Art of Friendship: Japanese Surimono Prints and Tennō no dainingu hōru (Emperor’s Dining Hall) written with Yamazaki Taisuke and Imaizumi Yoshiko. Most recently, she co-curated the exhibition Japan: Myths to Manga, held at Young V&A.
