By Rebecca Wallace
About this blog: I grew up in Menlo Park and have long been involved with both local journalism and local theater. After starting my career as an editorial intern with The Almanac, I was a staff reporter for the Almanac and the San Mateo County Ti...
(More)About this blog: I grew up in Menlo Park and have long been involved with both local journalism and local theater. After starting my career as an editorial intern with The Almanac, I was a staff reporter for the Almanac and the San Mateo County Times, covering local government, cops, health/science and many other beats. In 2005 I made the move to the arts desk at the Palo Alto Weekly. A&E is close to my heart because of my experience in the performing arts. I've been acting and singing in Bay Area theater productions for years, and have played everything from a sassy French boy to a Texas cheerleader. In Ad Libs, I blog about the exhibitions I see, the artists I meet and the intriguing new projects and trends I see in the arts world.
(Hide)View all posts from Rebecca Wallace
In our young country, it seems inconceivable that a span of 200-plus years could be just "a period," a fraction of our history. But that's Japan (and most other nations around the world) for you.
"Mapping Edo: The Social and Political Geography of Early Modern Japan," a new small exhibit at the Cantor Arts Center, looks at the art of Japan's Edo period. This span, which extended from the early 1600s into the 1800s, was marked by stability and growth, with much attention paid to the arts.
This is evident in the paintings, prints and archival maps now up in the Stanford museum's Madeleine H. Russell Gallery. Everyday scenes mingle with pastoral landscapes, historical sites and castles from early modern Japan. Artists represented include printmakers Kitao Masayoshi and Utagawa Kunisada. The show is up through Feb. 2.
Pictured: "Plum Garden, Kameido," an 1857 woodblock print by Utagawa Hiroshige (1797-1858).
To read this blog in its entirety, go to
Ad Libs.
