Detail: The phrase “sending you cool breezes” is used in the Japanese greeting cards exchanged in the sultry heat of summer. Artworks can also conjure a sense of cool respite. In paintings, figures whose garments flutter in the wind or watch the splashing spray of a waterfall invite the viewer to share their cooling sensations. Similarly, artists used witty shapes and color, such as the blue tones of porcelain with underglaze cobalt designs, to symbolize coolness in decorative arts.
We offer this gallery of close to 30 paintings and ceramics as the Nezu Museum’s summer greetings to its visitors, wishing all a cool and breezy summer.
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