The Neutral Reflection of Westernization: Women in the Rokumeikan

Rokumeikan.jpg

Woman's Charity Bazaar at the Rokumeikan, Toyohara Chikanobu, 1887.  http://data.ukiyo-e.org/mfa/images/sc15077.jpg.

Bunmei Kaika or “civilization and enlightenment” was the watch word of the Meiji Era, and in the quest to become a “civilized” nation, elements of polite Western society were reproduced all over Japan, particularly at the highest rungs of Meiji society. The Rokumeikan, or Deer-Cry Pavilion, was one of the hallmarks of this new emphasis on Westernization.  Built in Tokyo in 1883, the Rokumeikan was an restaurant and gathering place for wealthy, and served an exclusively French menu, the height of Western sophistication[1].

 Pictured at the left is Woman’s Charity Bazaar at the Rokumeikan, a print produced in 1887 by Toyohara Chikanobu that is emblematic of the kind of aesthetic changes seen across the Meiji era. Like most woodblock artists of the time, Chikanobu had a number of subjects, but was particularly famous for his attention to women’s hairstyle and fashion across the years[2]. As such, though the print was probably produced for solely artistic purposes and to viewed almost exclusively by the upper class, Chikanobu’s work provides a particularly illuminating glimpse into the relevancy of fashions at the time. Obviously, the women pictured are not dressed in the formal kimonos and traditional hairstyles that would have abounded in the Tokugawa era. Instead the women wear elaborate Western-style dress with the appropriate accessories—bustles, large hats, and boots that characterized Victorian England. Behind them the gentlemen wear dark suits and hats, and no one’s hair is in the traditional top knot. Even the room itself is Western in design. The carpet alone stands out as a decidedly Western feature, as do the grand chandelier and flowered arches.

Yet, much like the overall attempts at civilization or Westernization, the painting does not portray an exact replica of the West. Most noticeable perhaps, is that the though the cut of the women’s dresses are not Japanese, the color combinations and prints are much more reminiscent of the layered kimono effect than British dresses at the time. Flags are hanging from the ceiling and chandelier, which would most likely not be seen in the West unless there was a particularly patriotic holiday, which given the title of the piece does not seem to be the case. In the foreground, there are two dolls displayed on the table, one in what appears to be a Western school costume, and one in traditional dress. It seems symbolic that these two figures are dolls and that each represents a different side of Japan, the traditional roots and the new Western veneer. The fact the scene was recreated in a woodblock print at all, a quintessentially Japanese style of art, reinforces the merging of Japanese and Western styles that defined the Meiji period.  Relatively little is known about Chikanobu’s political beliefs, but more information on his personal feelings on Bunmei Kaika would help illuminate if the image is supposed to portray a positive or negative view of Westernization, particularly as the print was produced while the obsession with the civilized West was in full swing.



[1] Miller, Ian. "Bunmei Kaika: Civilization and Enlightenment." Lecture, Societies of the World 43: The Samurai Revolution from Harvard University, Cambridge, October 27, 2014.

[2] "Toyohara Chikanobu." Wikipedia. November 22, 2014. Accessed November 24, 2014. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Toyohara_Chikanobu.

The Neutral Reflection of Westernization: Women in the Rokumeikan