The First Day of Spring (Risshun), from the series Fashionable Poetic Immortals of the Four Seasons (Fūzoku shiki Kasen)

The First Day of Spring (Risshun), from the series Fashionable Poetic Immortals of the Four Seasons (Fūzoku shiki Kasen)

Suzuki Harunobu

An item at Metropolitan Museum of Art

A young man with a sword tucked into his sash looks up at a young woman in the doorway as he gestures toward a bitter-orange (daidai) tree in the garden. The artist puns on a classical poem by Fujiwara no Shunzei (1114–1204) that refers to opening the gates of the heavens (ama no to) by showing a young woman opening rain shutters (amado). The poem reads: Ama no to no akuru keshiki mo , shizuka nite kumoi yori koso haru wa tachikere As the gates of heavens open, quietly a splendid scene appears as spring arrives from the palace of the clouds. —Trans. John T. Carpenter

Asian Art

An exhibit at Metropolitan Museum of Art

The First Day of Spring (Risshun), from the series Fashionable Poetic Immortals of the Four Seasons (Fūzoku shiki Kasen)The First Day of Spring (Risshun), from the series Fashionable Poetic Immortals of the Four Seasons (Fūzoku shiki Kasen)The First Day of Spring (Risshun), from the series Fashionable Poetic Immortals of the Four Seasons (Fūzoku shiki Kasen)The First Day of Spring (Risshun), from the series Fashionable Poetic Immortals of the Four Seasons (Fūzoku shiki Kasen)The First Day of Spring (Risshun), from the series Fashionable Poetic Immortals of the Four Seasons (Fūzoku shiki Kasen)

The Met's collection of Asian art—more than 35,000 objects, ranging in date from the third millennium B.C. to the twenty-first century—is one of the largest and most comprehensive in the world. Each of the many civilizations of Asia is represented by outstanding works, providing an unrivaled experience of the artistic traditions of nearly half the world.