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Yōga (洋画; literally "Western-style painting") is a style of artisticpainting in Japan, typically of Japanese subjects, themes, or landscapes, but using Western (European) artistic conventions, techniques, and materials. The term was coined in theMeiji period (1868–1912) to distinguish Western-influenced artwork from indigenous, or more traditionalJapanese paintings, orNihonga (日本画).
European painting was introduced to Japan during the lateMuromachi period along withChristian missionaries fromPortugal in 1543.[1] Early religious works by Japanese artists in imitation of works brought by the missionaries can be considered some of the earliest forms ofYōga. However, thepolicy of national seclusion introduced by theTokugawa bakufu in theEdo period effectively ended the influence of western art on Japanese painting, with the exception of the use ofperspective, which was discovered by Japanese artists in sketches found in European medical and scientific texts imported from theDutch viaNagasaki. Some Japanese artists incorporated the technique, such asUtagawa Toyoharu inPerspective Pictures of Places in Japan (c. 1772–1781).[2] During the first half of the nineteenth century, some painting works showed influences of Western Art such as prints ofKatsushika Hokusai. (c.1760–1849).[3]
In 1855, the Tokugawabakufu established theBansho Shirabesho (Institute for the Study of Barbarian Documents), a translation and research institute for western studies, including a section to investigate western art.[4] This section was headed byKawakami Tōgai,[1] whose assistantTakahashi Yuichi was a student of English artistCharles Wirgman. In 1868, Togai started a private art school and publishedA Guide to Western Style Painting (1871).[1] Takahashi is regarded by many as the first true Yōga painter.[1] Yuichi believed that Western style could help to build a Japanese national identity.[1]
In 1876, theKobu Bijutsu Gakkō (Technical Art School) was established by the Meiji government as Japan's first dedicatedYōga art school.[4]Foreign advisors, such as the Italian artistsAntonio Fontanesi,Vicenzo Ragusa andGiovanni Cappelletti were hired by the government to teach Japanese artists,[4] such asAsai Chū in the latest western techniques.
French artistRaphael Collin also taught the Western-style to Japanese artists such as Kuroda Seiki,Fuji Masazo, andAsai Chū. Despite that Impressionism was emerging, Collin was more interested in Neoclassical Academic painting and Naturalism of theBarbizon school.[1]
In the 1880s, the general reaction against Westernization and the growth in popularity and strength of theNihonga movement caused the temporary decline ofYōga. TheKobu Bijutsu Gakkō was forced to close in 1883, and when theTokyo Bijutsu Gakkō (the forerunner of theTokyo National University of Fine Arts and Music) was established in 1887, onlyNihonga subjects were taught.
However, in 1889, theMeiji Bijutsukai (Meiji Fine Arts Society) was established byYōga artists, and in 1893, the return ofKuroda Seiki from his studies in Europe gave fresh impetus to theYōga genre, with the establishment of theHakuba-kai (White Horse Society). From 1896, a Yōga department was added to the curriculum of theTokyo Bijutsu Gakkō, and from that point onwards,Yōga has been an accepted component of Japanese painting. Later yōga art societies in Japan includedShunyo-kai art society (related toNihon Bijutsuin), Teikoku Bijutsuin (the Imperial Fine Arts Academy), and the Nika Association.[5]
Since that time,Yōga andNihonga have been the two main divisions of modern Japanese painting. This division is reflected in education, the mounting of exhibitions, and the identification of artists. However, in many casesNihonga artists also adopted realistic Western painting techniques, such as perspective and shading. Because of this tendency to synthesize, althoughNihonga forms a distinct category within the Japanese annualNitten exhibitions, in recent years, it has become increasingly difficult to draw a distinct separation in either techniques or materials betweenNihonga andYōga.
During thePacific War, Yōga’s oil painters used the Western style for highlighting the Japanese War effort. In the post-war era, Yōga was perceived as a conservative style linked to the prewar Japanese establishment.
Yōga has been defined by using the medium and format of theEuropean tradition, such asoils on canvas,watercolors,pastels, andpencil on paper. However, Yōga artists were criticized abroad for lack of authenticity and originality. As an answer to these critics, between the 1920s and 1930s, Yōga painters adopted materials associated with Nihonga and premodern painting traditions for Western topics.Reclining Nude with Toile de Jouy byFoujita Tsuguharu (1886–1968) was an example of this trend. Tsuguharu combined oils with materials proper to Nihonga for the nude.[3]
Yōga in its broadest sense encompassesoil painting,watercolors,pastels,ink sketches,lithography,etching and other techniques developed in western culture. However, in a more limited sense,Yōga is sometimes used specifically to refer to oil painting.
Media related toYōga at Wikimedia Commons