The opening of Yokohama to trade with the United States and Europe in 1859 ended more than two centuries of Japanese isolation and transformed the rural fishing village into a thriving international port. Curated by Ann Yonemura, Senior Associate Curator of Japanese Art of the Freer Gallery of Art and the Arthur M. Sackler Gallery, this exhibition documents this early history of Japan’s gateway to the world, artists produced colorful woodblock prints of city scenes, urbane residents, and harbor views, capturing this tumultuous era of Japan’s transformation into a modern industrial state and international power.
Organized by the Arthur M. Sackler Gallery of the Smithsonian Institution, Japan After Perry: Views of Yokohama and Meiji Japan showcases 24 woodblock prints from the collection gift of Ambassador and Mrs. William and Florence Leonhart. The presentation at the Japanese American National Museum commemorates 150 years of U.S.-Japan relations.