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The Namazu, also called the Onamazu, is a creature in Japanese mythology and folktales. The Namazu is a gigantic catfish said to cause earthquakes and tremors. Living in the mud under the Japanese isles, the Namazu is guarded by the protector god Kashima, who restrains the catfish using the <i>kaname-ishi</i> rock. Whenever Kashima lets his guard down, Namazu thrashes about and causes violent earthquakes.<br/><br/> The Namazu rose to new fame and popularity after the Ansei great earthquakes that happened near Edo in 1855. This led to the Namazu being worshipped as a god of world rectification (<i>yonaoshi daimyojin</i>), sent by the gods to correct some of the imbalances in the world.<br/><br/> Catfish woodblock prints known as <i>namazu-e</i> became their own popular genre within days of the earthquake. They were usually unsigned and often depicted scenes of a namazu or many namazu atoning for their deeds. They were quickly squashed by the Tokugawa Shogunate, the prints censored and destroyed, with only a handful surviving to this day.
Siyah Kalem or 'Black Pen' is the name given to the 15th century school of painting attributed to Mehmed Siyah Kalem. Nothing is known of his life, but his work indicates that he was of Central Asian Turkic origin, and thoroughly familiar with camp and military life. The paintings appear in the 'Conqueror’s Albums', so named because two portraits of Sultan Mehmed II the Conqueror are present in one of them.<br/><br/> The albums are made up of miniatures taken from manuscripts of the 14th, 15th, and early 16th centuries, and one series of paintings is inscribed 'work of Master Muḥammad Siyah Kalem'. Something of the style and techniques of Chinese paintings is apparent in these, and an acquaintance with Buddhist art, particularly in the depictions of grotesque demonic figures.<br/><br/> It seems likely that certain paintings contained in the 'Conqueror's Albums' are of Chinese origin and may have been used as stylistic guides for painters in the Siyah Kalem tradition.
Dong Ho painting (Vietnamese: Tranh Đông Hồ or Tranh làng Hồ), full name Dong Ho folk woodcut painting (Tranh khắc gỗ dân gian Đông Hồ) is a genre of Vietnamese woodcut paintings originating from Dong Ho village (làng Đông Hồ) in Bac Ninh Province, Vietnam.<br/><br/> Using the traditional điệp paper and colours derived from nature, craftsmen print Dong Ho pictures of different themes from good luck wishes, historical figures to everyday activities and folk allegories. In the past, Dong Ho painting was an essential element of the Tết holiday in Vietnam.
Tsukioka Yoshitoshi (1839 – June 9, 1892), also named Taiso Yoshitoshi, was a Japanese artist. He is widely recognized as the last great master of Ukiyo-e, a type of Japanese woodblock printing. He is additionally regarded as one of the form's greatest innovators. His career spanned two eras – the last years of feudal Japan, and the first years of modern Japan following the Meiji Restoration. Like many Japanese, Yoshitoshi was interested in new things from the rest of the world, but over time he became increasingly concerned with the loss of many outstanding aspects of traditional Japanese culture, among them traditional woodblock printing.
Body tattooing was an important rite of passage for men in the Visayas and was often related to head-hunting or heroism. At festivals, wrestlers wore loincloths to expose their tattoos making them appear more fierce and entreating protection from the spirit world. The first Europeans in the Philippines refered to the Visayans as ‘Los Pintados’, meaning ‘The Painted Ones’.<br/><br/> The name ‘Visayan’ refers to any of several ethnic groups, including Austronesian and Negroid peoples, that inhabit the regions of the Visayas and some parts of Mindanao in the Philippines.
Hanoi is the capital and second-largest city in Vietnam. From 1010 until 1802, it was the most important political center in the country, but was eclipsed by Hue during the Nguyen Dynasty as the capital of Vietnam. Hanoi served as the capital of French Indochina from 1902 to 1954, and from 1954 to 1976, it was the capital of North Vietnam.
Japan: An erotic depiction of a man and a woman engaging in a wrestling match with a second woman acting as a referee. Shunga woodblock print, c. 1772. Shunga is a Japanese term for erotic art. Most shunga are a type of ukiyo-e, usually executed in woodblock print format. While rare, there are extant erotic painted handscrolls which predate the Ukiyo-e movement. Translated literally, the Japanese word shunga means picture of spring; 'spring' is a common euphemism for sex.
During late 1920s and 1930s Japan, a new poster style developed that reflected the growing influence of the masses in Japanese society. These art posters were strongly influenced by the emerging political forces of Communism and Fascism in Europe and the Soviet Union, adopting a style that incorporated bold slogans with artistic themes ranging from Leftist socialist realism through Stateism and state-directed public welfare, to Militarism and Imperialist expansionism.<br/><br/> Though diverse in their messages, all bear the stamp of the ovebearing proletarian art of the time, reflecting shades of Nazi Germany, Socialist Russia and Fascist Italy in the Far East.