In Commemoration of the "Aqua Metropolis Osaka 2009" Temporary Exhibition "Rediscover Osaka ― The Aqua Metropolis"
The people’s lives in city of Osaka have long been closely connected with the surrounding rivers and the sea. This can also be imagined from the City’s ancient name Naniwa meaning "heavy sea" or "rapid waves". In the Edo period (c. 17th century), excavation of moats and canals in order to develop the City’s infrastructure was operated throughout the City. As a result, a network of waterways for flood control, drainage and transportation routes were spread across the whole City, giving Osaka the name "Aqua Metropolis". The Nakanoshima area, in which The Museum of Oriental Ceramics, Osaka is now located, is considered to be the thriving center of this network, surrounded by mansions combining a storage building and office called kurayashiki of various provincial domains, rivers and canals crowded with boats carrying a variety of goods. Recent investigation confirmed that in the property of each kurayashiki there was a facility that the boat can be drawn in directly for easy loading or unloading. It also became clear that in the Dojimahama area there was a kiln for production of glazed ceramics before the Kurayashikis were established, suggesting the diverse use of the land by the rivers.
This exhibition introduces you to the cityscape and liveliness of the Nakanoshima area and the banks of Okawa River of the early-modern and modern times through paintings, craftworks and photographic records mainly housed in the Osaka Museum of History. We hope that you will have a chance to turn your thoughts to the thriving times here at Nakanoshima, which has been ― and still is today ― the center of the Aqua Metropolis.
Information
Title:
In Commemoration of the "Aqua Metropolis Osaka 2009" Temporary Exhibition : "Rediscover Osaka - The Aqua Metropolis"
Dates:
Saturday, August 1 – Monday, November 23, 2009
Opening hours:
From 9:30 AM to 5:00 PM (Last admission: 4:30 PM)
Closed:
Mondays (except Sep. 21, Oct. 12 and Nov. 23), Thursday, Sep. 24, Tuesday, Oct. 13 and Wednesday, Nov. 4
Venue:
The Museum of Oriental Ceramics, Osaka (Gallery J)
Organizer:
The Museum of Oriental Ceramics, Osaka
Osaka Museum of History
The Yomiuri Shimbun, Osaka Headquarters
Admission:
Adults 500 yen (400 yen)
University & high school students 300 yen (250 yen)
・All exhibitions can be viewed with the above admission.
・Prices in parenthesis are group discount rates for a party of 20 people or more.
・The following visitors are free of charge:
*Holders of Shintaishogaisha techo (Identification Booklet for the Physically Challenged), including one companion
*Senior citizens of Osaka City holding IDs including:
Kenko techo (Health Handbook) with a ‘crane’ mark
Keiro yutai joshasho (senior discount ID for public transportation)
*Junior-high school students and under
Number of items on display:
approximately 30
Also showing:
* Temporary Exhibition:
"Chinese Ceramics of the Irie Masanobu Collection"
*Permanent exhibition:
Chinese and Korean Ceramics of the Ataka Collection
Korean ceramics of the Rhee Byung-Chang Collection
Japanese ceramics
Chinese Snuff Bottles of the Oki Shoichiro Collection
Inquiries:
The Museum of Oriental Ceramics, Osaka
Phone: 06-6223-0055
Fax : 06-6223-0057
URL : http://www.moco.or.jp
The View of Nabeshima from Oe Bridge, from the series Naniwa Hyakkei
("One Hundred Views of Naniwa")
Utagawa Kunikazu, second half of the Edo period
Osaka Museum of History
(On display: August 1 – 30)
The overall composition of this work is unique, with the Oe bridge over the Dojima River depicted from an extraordinarily low angle, as if the viewer is squatting down on the bridge looking through the railings. Crossing the bridge is a man, merely his leg and part of the waist appearing on the left. He hangs a note pad written souba-tsuke (price list) on his waist, suggesting that he is a rice broker probably heading for the Dojima rice market. The market price at the Dojima rice market significantly affected the economy at that time as does the stock market today. Beyond the railings of the bridge, granaries owned by the Nabeshima domain of Saga can be viewed, with the typical walls called namako-kabe (wall covered with square tiles jointed with raised plaster), as well as the bridge for anchorage of the merchant boats. The area in front of the Nabeshima kurayashiki was called Nabeshima-hama (literally meaning Nabeshima shore), which was a popular spot for people to enjoy the cool evening breeze in summer. The work dexterously combines the natural features of the Nakanoshima and Dojima area.
Boating scene at Sonezaki in Naniwa
Six-panel screen, Edo period
Osaka Museum of History
(On display: September 1 – 27)
The Sonezaki (or Shijimi) River flows across the center of the whole screen, on which boaters are enjoying their ride. On the left side of the screen is the Umeda Bridge, which two lovers cross on their journey in a scene of the popular play Sonezaki Shinchu. Under the bridge, a merchant on a boat sells grilled eel and sake. Dojima Shinchi, the area on the southern shore of Sonezaki River, was developed in 1688, which was followed by the reclaim of the northern shore, called Sonezaki Shinchi, in 1708. Both areas received permission to open teahouses and restaurants by the government as part of the measures for the advancement of reclaimed land, which led the two areas to become popular pleasure districts.
Dish with design of Korai Bridge
D: 38.0cm
Meiji period
Osaka Museum of History
During the Edo period, Korai Bridge depicted in this dish was among the official bridges controlled by the shogunate, counted as one of the important bridges of the city. It became the first iron bridge in Osaka when it was rebuilt in 1870, coining the nickname "tekkyo" or "kurogane-bashi" (both meaning "iron bridge"). In 1929, however, the bridge was rebuilt again out of ferroconcrete, the form that can be seen today.
