Sketches

~It is important to realize that the vogue for things Japanese included far more than wood-block prints on paper, and that even among these there were great differences in motif and style. Chinoiserie had long been popular for the decorative arts, and as soon as they were available Japanese fabrics, screens, fans, and ceramics all quickly found active European markets. Further, the fine arts—sculpture, painting, and brush drawings—were brought from Japan by discriminating collectors, who may have shared with the Japanese themselves disdain for the cheaper and more popular prints of recent date...