CHAPEL HILL, NORTH CAROLINA.- Plum, Pine and Bamboo: Seasonal and Spiritual Paths in Japanese Art - this exhibition will celebrate the return to the Ackland Art Museum of the bird and flower folding screen attributed to the Japanese 15th century painter, Sesshu Toyo, from conservation at the Metropolitan Museum of Art. To celebrate this occasion, an exhibition of twenty Japanese art works from the Ackland’s collection will be on view from October 19, 2003 through January 4, 2004. The works on display will include hanging scrolls, hand scrolls, folding screens, print albums, ceramics, and sculpture, ranging in date from the Kamakura (1185 –1333 C.E.) through the Edo period (1615 – 1868 C.E.).

Respect and appreciation of nature and the seasons together with a belief in compassion and wisdom exemplified by eternal buddhas and bodhisattvas are the fundamentals of Japanese culture and spirit. The art works in this exhibition illustrate the importance of both nature and Buddhism in Japanese art. These enduring subjects in Japanese culture are presented both individually and together, from a sacred Kamakura period iconic painting of the Bodhisattva Jizo to the simplistic and poetic beauty of flowers and birds in winter on a Muromachi screen. The timeless themes of nature and Buddhism merge in visions of sacred landscapes, seasonal motifs, serene deities, and pure beauty.

The bird and flower decoration on the honored screen is a marriage of the two major themes of the exhibition, nature and Buddhism. The transformation of nature through the seasons has always held special importance in Japan. A standardized iconography of seasonal motifs composed of flowers and birds living during certain seasons pervades Japanese art and culture. These seasonal motifs are not only used to represent the physical seasons, but also to symbolize periods of time in the passing of one’s life. In Zen Buddhist temples, popular wall decoration included the theme of birds and flowers of the four seasons. The monks and visitors used the paintings for inspiration in contemplating the endless rotation of seasons. The secular and spiritual attraction to the bird and flower theme demonstrates how the Japanese hold both nature and Buddhism equally sacred.