Folding screen; Japan, ca. 1840.

Folding screen; Japan, c. 1840.
Painted paper with a reverse side in paper and ink.
It has some tears.
Measurements: 171 x 378 cm.

A six-panel folding screen whose ornamentation features a series of calligraphy panels, displaying characters written with brush and ink.
Japanese folding screens, or byōbu, have occupied a central place in Japanese material culture and aesthetics since the Middle Ages, but their role during the 19th and 20th centuries is particularly revealing of the processes of modernization and social transformation that Japan underwent during this period. Originally conceived as movable room dividers, intended to regulate privacy and shape the sensory experience of traditional architecture, screens became true mediums for artistic expression.
During the 19th century—in the height of the late Edo period and later during the Meiji era (1868–1912)—folding screens established themselves as prime canvases for depicting scenes of daily life, seasonal landscapes, and literary motifs. With the country’s opening to international trade in the second half of the 19th century, folding screens began to circulate in the global market, sparking the interest of European and North American collectors and museums.