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Stonehenge, Jōmon Japan, and Prehistoric Creativity in Flame Pots

A Visit to Stonehenge, Avebury, and the Exhibition: ‘Circles of Stone: Stonehenge and Prehistoric Japan’
Fig. 1: At Stonehenge on 11th May 2023

Stonehenge is a prehistoric monument located at the heart of Wiltshire in England, and its existence and origins have generated many interpretations as a calendar, temple, or ancestral site over its long history. As part of my classes, I recently had the opportunity to explore its connection to Japan through the 116th International ARC Seminar organised by Ritsumeikan University on 26th April, followed by a visit to Stonehenge and Avebury on 11th May.


The presentation, ‘Stonehenge and Prehistoric Japan: Archaeological Exchanges between Japan and the UK – Current and Future Trends’, by Prof Simon Kaner in the ARC seminar and the exhibition, ‘Circles of Stone: Stonehenge and Prehistoric Japan’, at the Stonehenge Visitor Centre both delved into the archaeological parallels between the Jōmon Japan (ca. 10,500 – ca. 300 B.C.) and Neolithic Britain through archaeological sites and artefacts, whilst shedding lights on earlier cross-cultural attention to stone circles from both countries. There were also some linkages with my previous learnings from an earlier lecture this semester, including an introduction about the first report about Stonehenge in Japan by Shōgorō Tsuboi (坪井 正五郎) (1863 – 1913), who mentored Ryūzō Torii (鳥居 龍蔵) (1870 - 1953), the first Japanese Anthropologist who implemented camera for fieldwork.



Inspirations from Jōmon Culture in Modern Japanese Art

While prehistoric artefacts aid our ethnographic and anthropological understanding of our ancestors’ lifestyles, cultures, environments, and climates, they are also crucial for interrogating the origin of human creativity. Many artists have drawn inspiration from primitive creativity, incorporating it into their artistic expressions.


Fig. 2: ‘Flame Pot’ from Japan at the Exhibition: ‘Circles of Stone: Stonehenge and Prehistoric Japan’ at Stonehenge Visitor Centre

Tarō Okamoto (岡本 太郎) (1911–1996) was among many avant-garde artists who found artistic inspiration in Jōmon culture. After being captivated by artefacts at the Musée de l’Homme, he pursued Ethnology Studies at the University of Paris.[1] Okamoto recognised the aesthetic allure of Jōmon potteries, which at that time were regarded as craft objects (Kōgēhin, 工芸品) rather than pieces of art work, along with the spiritual essence embedded within the creation by the Jōmon people.[2] One of the highlights from the exhibition at Stonehenge Visitor Centre was a Flame Pot (Fig. 2), also called Kaen-gata Doki (火焔型土器) in Japanese. Okamoto once described such flame pots as evoking images of the deep sea.[3] His enthusiasm for the Jōmon was embodied in his body of projects as seen in Jōmon-jin (Man of the Jōmon Period) (1982) and other works.


Fig. 3: Leaflet of the Exhibition: ‘Taro Okamoto: From the Jomon Period to the Present’ (2019) at Taro Okamoto Museum of Art, Kawasaki, Japan

In recent years, there has been increasing attention to Okamoto’s works and their connection with Jōmon culture, represented by the special exhibition ‘Taro Okamoto: From the Jomon Period to the Present’ (2019) at Taro Okamoto Museum of Art, Kawasaki in Japan. (Fig. 3) This ground-breaking exhibition showcased the multifaceted footprints of Okamoto’s activities, his fieldwork journey to explore tribal roots through Jōmon potteries, and the artists of his time with whom he had close ties.[4]

I am eager to explore other examples of how modern Japanese artists have captured primitive creativity from Jōmon period and how other exhibitions positioned and contextualised Jōmon artefacts beyond its archeological realm.





Reference:

[1] Taro Okamoto Memorial Museum, ‘About Taro: 1. A Heretic Is Born in Paris’, Taro Okamoto Memorial Museum, accessed May 19, 2023, https://taro-okamoto.or.jp/en/taro-okamoto.

[2] Ibid, ‘About Taro: 2. A Solitary Battle’, accessed May 19, 2023, https://taro-okamoto.or.jp/en/taro-okamoto.

[3] Takumi Ishii, ‘The Jomon Period and Taro Okamoto’, Japan Heritage: ‘What on Earth?!’ Flame Pots and Snow Country Culture in the Shinano River Basin, accessed May 19, 2023, https://www.kaen-heritage.com/doki/taro/.

[4] Taro Okamoto Museum of Art, Kawasaki, “Special Exhibition in 2019,” Taro Okamoto Museum of Art, Kawasaki, accessed May 20, 2023, https://www.taromuseum.jp/archive.html?tgt-year=2019.



Related Links:

・Exhibition ‘Circles of Stone: Stonehenge and Prehistoric Japan’ at the Stonehenge Visitor Centre: https://www.english-heritage.org.uk/circles-of-stone

・Taro Okamoto Memorial Museum: https://taro-okamoto.or.jp/en/

・Special Exhibition, ‘Taro Okamoto: From the Jomon Period to the Present’ (2019) at Taro Okamoto Museum of Art, Kawasaki:


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