Early Mingei and Development of Japanese Crafts 1920s-1940s

Abstract

There has been considerable interest, both in and outside Japan, in the Mingei movement which began in the 1920s. As a result, its theory and history have been studied widely. Most studies, however, have treated the movement in isolation and as one which was conceived, initiated and developed by Yanagi Sdetsu (1889-1961). This thesis challenges the conventional view and argues that the movement had its roots in the development of modern craft in Japan which, in turn, had been influenced by modernist consciousness in art and literature. It does so by two methods: by setting the movement in the context of the modern development of craft and its appreciation, and by examining the contents of Kögei, the magazine which acted as the principal mouthpiece of the movement from 1931 to 1939. The thesis thus establishes: that in its early stage the Mingei movement included different ideas on craft while sharing an appreciation for getemono (ordinary craft wares); that although Yanagi played the central role in the movement, his so-called 'Mingei theory' was by no means unconditionally accepted by the other members: and that a change in the character of the movement, from appreciative to quasi-religious, was brought about not so much by Yanagi himself as by those who put their complete faith in Yanagi's theory. The thesis also argues that this change in the character of the movement did not affect the works of the craft artists of the Mingei movement? they produced their work like other modern Japanese craft artists of the same period, while supporting each other within the close membership.