Meisho 名所, literally meaning a “places with a name” or “famous places,” usually consist of scenic landscape sites recognized for their beauty since ancient times. The recognition of such a site did not occur spontaneously of course but rather resulted from deliberate actions based on numerous historical contingencies. The study of meisho, rooted in topography and landscape, calls out for an interdisciplinary approach. The methodologies of fields such as architectural history, landscape and environmental studies, and religious studies, in addition to art history and literature will prove especially useful in clarifying the unique set of forces and agency involved in designating meisho. Topics to be considered include 1) the degree to which topography or locality played a role in the creation and popularization of meisho; 2) how meisho, whether natural, cultural, or political, have been represented in various kinds of media such as paintings, literary works and photography; and 3) how cultural memory has been interwoven into landscapes, and inherited, as in the system of ‘cultural properties’ or bunkazai.
Program
Wednesday, October 31, 2018
Common Room, 2 Divinity Avenue, Harvard University
9:30-10:10
Xiaoxiao Wu, University of Tokyo, Institute for Advanced Studies on Asia
The Representation of Chinese “Meisho” in Japanese Painting: From the Eight Views of the Xiaoxiang Region to Ten Views of the West Lake
10:10-10:50
Misato Ido, Kyoto Institute of Technology / Harvard-Yenching Institute
Reproducing and Representing Meisho: Embedded Memories in the Screen Painting of Mt. Yoshino
10:50-11:30
Robert Goree, Wellesley College
What is a *Meisho*? Insights from *Miyako Meisho Zue*
11:30-1:30 Lunch Break
1:30-2:10
Seishi Namiki, Kyoto Institute of Technology
People Gathering at Meisho: On the Screen Painting of Ituskushima-Wakanoura
2:10-2:50
Kazue Akamatsu, Kyoto Institute of Technology
From Meisho to Meishoscape : Topography of Kamakura and Enoshima
2:50-3:30
Yoshiro Ono, Kyoto Institute of Technology
Cherry Blossom and Maple trees in Kyoto
3:30-3:50 Coffee Break
3:50-4:30
Ai Fukunaga, SOAS, University of London
Performing *Meisho*: The Miyako Hotel, Art, and Tourism in Meiji Kyoto
4:30-5:10
Shigeatsu Shimizu, Kyoto Institute of Technology
From Meisho to Cultural Properties: Dismantling and Reassembling Landscapes in Modern Japan
5:10-5:50
Jing Zheng, Wuhan University / Harvard-Yenching Institute
Dual Narratives of “Meisho”: Building and Presenting Rural Mansions in Southeastern China
5:50-6:30
Discussion
Melissa McCormick, Harvard University
Yukio Lippit, Harvard University
Organized by Misato Ido, Kyoto Institute of Technology/ Harvard-Yenching Visiting Scholar
Sponsored by the Grants-in-Aid for Scientific Research (Grant-in-Aid for the Promotion of Joint International Research) and Melissa McCormick, EALC, Harvard University (Rockefeller Fund for East Asian Art)