Art critic, author, and poet Sadakichi Hartmann was born to a German father and a Japanese mother, to whom he dedicated Japanese Art. His dual cultural heritage gives him the unique position of presenting Asian art with Western authority.
However, he was quick to clarify that this popular volume is "not so much a book for experts and connoisseurs – too much has been written in that strain – but for those persons who would like to become more intimately acquainted with Japanese Art, but have been deterred from doing so by the want of a book which would accomplish this, without obliging them to turn specialists." This could explain why this particular work of the well-known critic became a hit when it was published in 1903.
Hartmann used an easy, conversational tone in discussing early religious paintings in the history of Japanese art, as well as the artistic works produced during the feudal and renaissance periods. He also covered the realistic movement, ornamental arts, Japanese architecture and sculpture, and its influence on Western civilization.
The pages of this volume are not covered only with text – they also feature a good number of illustrations of the key components of Japan's art heritage.
Hartmann's Japanese Art is recommended reading for those wishing to learn more about the art in the Land of the Rising Sun without having to deal with highly technical or scholarly nit-picking.
