While China's long-running contribution to Japanese art is usually acknowledged, it is often assumed that Western models only started to have a significant impact in the Meiji period. Part of the reason for this is the sharp reaction to Western artistic influence that occurred in the late 19th century, which effectively split the art world in Japan into the competing camps of yoga (Western-style art) and nihonga (Japanese-style art).
While the former appears as a whole-hearted embrace of Western artistic innovation, the other seems like a stubborn, purist clinging to timeless traditions, driving home the point that the two forms were artistic chalk and cheese. However, what is often forgotten in this simplistic dichotomy is that the Japanese art of the Edo Period (1603-1868) already contained a considerable amount of Western artistic DNA.
Perhaps the best-known example is the famous ukiyo-e (woodblock print) artist Katsushika Hokusai. The Edo-Tokyo Museum's 2007 exhibition "Siebold & Hokusai and his Tradition" did much to highlight Hokusai's use of Western artistic devices, such as perspective and vanishing point, and presented evidence that pointed to a Dutch connection. Now, "Maruyama Okyo: Revealing Painting's Depths" at the Mitsui Memorial Museum adds to the catalog of evidence of pre-Meiji Western influence on Japanese art, with an attractive show focusing on the art of the famed 18th-century painter.