The Edo period also saw the proliferation of paintings of specific sites of celebrated beauty, such as the blossoming cherry trees of Mt Yoshino, as well as the new experimentation of several artists with Western perspective. The newly wealthy merchant class commissioned paintings and prints of actors and geisha dressed in current fashions, while the artist Sharaku invented a new style of close-up actor prints. Also included in this section are no and kabuki costumes with bold designs embroidered in gold-wrapped threads. Accompanying the exhibition is a fully illustrated catalogue written by a team of leading scholars led by exhibition curator Robert T. Singer. The National Gallery of Art, on the National Mall at 4th Street and Constitution Avenue, NW, is open Monday through Saturday from 10 am to 5 pm and Sunday, from 11 am to 6 pm.
Admission is free.