Japan was closed to the West until the mid-1800s, when trade with Europe began. Many artists were influenced by Japanese painters and printmakers. I will discuss my findings.

The classic book, "Moby Dick" or "The White Whale" (1851) by American author Herman Melville, tells the story of a sailor who hunts for white whale off the coast of Japan because of the near extinction of the species in the Atlantic Ocean.

Whale oil was popular during the US Industrial Revolution for heating and in the operation of cotton mills.

In 1868 the Meiji Restoration, when the emperor was restored to power, advanced Japan to the modern era in trading with the West.

Due to US Naval Commander Mathew Perry's arrival in Edo (Tokyo today) with four (4) warships, offering the shogun an ultimatum: trade or war. The peaceful choice was taken.

One of the most popular and recognized Japanese artist is Katsushika Hokusai (1760-1849), best known for "The Great Wave Off Kanagawa" (1831).

So admired by Vincent van Gogh, copies of his favorite Japanese artists were said to be posted on a wall. It is believed that the sky in "Starry Night" (1889) has the same energy as the mighty wave.

Van Gogh incorporated the Japanese motif in his paintings "Courtesan" (1887) and "Portrait of Pere Tanguy" (from same year).

Vincent painted "Self Portrait with Bandaged Ear" (1889) where he places a Japanese print in the background. He used the term "Japonaiserie" in letters to his brother Theo.

Paul Gauguin, Vincent van Gogh's friend, used bold color and flattened perspective, indicative of the Japanese motif. In "Vision of the Sermon (Jacob Wrestling with the Angel)", influenced by Hokusai's "Manga" (1814), a collection of thousands of images in ten (10) volumes.

In 1890, Japanese woodblocks were exhibited at Ecole des Beaux Arts, Paris.
Mary Cassatt, an American expatriate living in Paris, owned Japanese prints by Kitagawa Utamaro.

Cassatt imitated Japanese design in her painting "The Letter" (1890-1891) with the stylistic flattening of color and the interior. Also, seventeen (17) versions of "The Bath" (same timeframe). Examples of both paintings can be seen at the National Gallery of Art, Washington, DC.

Edouard Manet caught the Japonaise bug and painted a portrait of his friend, "Portrait of Emile Zola" (1868) where he incorporated an Oriental screen, and a Japanese woodblock print on the wall.

Another Impressionist, Claude Monet, had a Japanese inspired bridge built over his pond. "Waterlilies and Japanese Bridge" (1899) was part of a series of twelve (12) views. They were exhibited at Durand-Ruel Gallery, Paris.

Monet painted his wife Camille in "Madame Monet in Japanese Kimono" (1876). It can be seen at the Museum of Fine Arts, Boston, MA.