Hungarian art students’ encounter with Japanese nihonga paintings
In November, renowned Japanese-style painter Ms. Mayumi Goto visited Hungary on the invitation of The Japan Foundation Budapest and held workshops for art students at the Painter Department of the Hungarian University of Fine Arts in Budapest and at the Faculty of Visual Arts and Music of Eszterházy Károly Catholic University in Eger.
Hungary marked the last stop of Ms. Goto’s professional tour around Europe. Prior to her arrival in Budapest, she held a lecture and workshop at the Bulgarian National Museum in Sofia, a workshop at the Prague National Gallery and at Masaryk University in Brno, Czech Republic, followed by another workshop in Bratislava, Slovakia. These programs were made possible by the support of the local Japanese Embassies.
Her workshop in Budapest was scheduled to be three hours, without a break, but even that considerable span of time left the participating students wanting more, and many stayed for an additional half an hour to ask Ms. Goto some questions. The workshop started with a brief lecture on the history and specifics of Japanese-style painting called nihonga.
What makes this technique special is the tools and materials it uses. The brushes and the way the artist holds them are what create the effortlessly beautiful lines we know from Japanese calligraphy. For the base, nihonga utilises washi paper of varying thickness, or silk in the case of traditional style roll paintings. However, the most exciting element is the paints themselves.
Japanese-style painting uses powder of colourful natural gemstones, which is then mixed with water and glue to stick to the base. In this day and age, when eco-friendly alternatives are becoming more and more popular with the younger generation, this natural aspect of nihonga caught many students’ attention.
After learning the theory, the students got to try their hands at creating Japanese-style paintings themselves. Ms. Goto’s main theme in her own art is cherry blossoms; however, since these workshops took place in autumn, she selected themes more fitting for the season. Coincidentally, all venues selected Japanese autumn foliage momiji over other options, such as nashi pears.
Ms. Goto used her own work as an example, but she also gave the aspiring young artists a free hand at creating their own pieces of art. The final works were all different and full of personality. During the workshop, she circled the classroom many times to provide all participants with feedback and hold their hands in a literal sense while teaching them the correct way of using the special brushes.
The highlight of the workshop was when Ms. Goto presented the students with genuine gold leaves that could be turned into gold dust to add a touch of elegant shimmer to the art pieces. The students’ interest in Japanese-style painting was so high, they requested links to webshops where they can buy the necessary equipment to continue practising nihonga on their own.
Ms. Goto followed up the workshop with detailed directions on what to buy and where, which the teachers shared with the participants. The Japanese Foundation Budapest hopes these aspiring artists will continue to spread awareness and appreciation for this unique Japanese art form in Hungary and the Central-Eastern European region.
This was Ms. Mayumi Goto’s fourth time visiting Hungary, and hopefully not the last. Her local curator, Ms. Csilla Schmitt of the Hungarian–Japanese Friendship Association Szombathely, regularly organises exhibitions of her works. This summer, Ms. Goto had a solo exhibition of her works at the Munkácsy Museum in Békéscsaba.
The Japan Foundation was established in 1972; its purpose is to promote cultural co-operation between Japan and other countries of the world. The Budapest Office opened in 1991, and since then has organised cultural events, performances, exhibitions and lectures, with the aim of introducing every segment of Japanese culture. The Foundation offers Japanese language courses, support for academic research and different grant programs as well.
Written by: Valentina Zugor/The Japan Foundation Budapest