TAISHO NIHONGA ART COLLECTIVES: A STUDY OF KINREISHA (1916 - 1922)

Abstract

This thesis takes the Kinreisha (1916–1922), a Taishō period nihonga art collective as the subject of study. The themes I examine in detail are pictorial trends explored by the Kinreisha, and collective behaviour (formation, collective culture and identity). It is hoped that an examination of the Kinreisha through these topics will give an insight into the formation of non mainstream groups, particularly during the Taishō era, their creative outputs and their relationship with the mainstream/ nihonga art history canon. Essentially, this has the potential to illustrate the intricate relationship of such ‘outlier’ groups within the larger context of the Japanese modern art world and their contributions to Japanese modernity.