Screens within Screens

An item at Metropolitan Museum of Art

This pair of screens is unusual in its subject matter: replicas of folding screens painted on the screens themselves, which offer a fanciful catalogue of workshop styles practiced in Japan in the 1700s. They relate to two categories of decorative motifs seen on screens, one known as “Whose Sleeves?” and the other as “Scattered Fans.” Screens of the first type feature variously patterned kimono draped over lacquer racks; those in the latter category are decorated with fans that have themselves been embellished with pictures. In a nod to the “Scattered Fans” genre, one of the replica screens seen here features fans decorated with a range of motifs, from vegetables and insects to episodes from courtly narratives.

Asian Art

An exhibit at Metropolitan Museum of Art

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.

Metropolitan Museum of Art