Pavilion for Japanese Art facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Pavilion for Japanese Art
Pavilion for Japanese Art at the Los Angeles County Museum of Art
General information
Type	Art Museum
Architectural style	Expressionism, New Modernism
Location	Los Angeles
Construction started	1978
Completed	1988
Design and construction
Architect	Bruce Goff (completed by Bart Prince after Goff's death)

The Pavilion for Japanese Art is a special part of the Los Angeles County Museum of Art (LACMA). It holds many amazing Japanese artworks. These pieces show art from ancient times, around 3000 BC, all the way up to the 1900s. A famous architect named Bruce Goff designed this unique building.

Discovering Japanese Art Collections

The Pavilion for Japanese Art displays many different kinds of Japanese art. You can explore various collections across its different levels.

West Wing: Ancient Art and Prints

• On the second floor of the Pavilion's West Wing, you can see archaeological artifacts. These are old tools and items from the past.
• You'll also find Buddhist and Shinto sculptures.
• Other items include ceramics (pottery), lacquerware (shiny decorated items), textiles (fabrics), cloisonné (decorated metalwork), and armor.
• The Helen and Felix Juda Gallery, also on the second floor, mostly shows Japanese prints. These exhibits change often.
• The museum has many traditional woodblock prints from the Edo period (1615–1868).
• There are also many prints from the Meiji period (1868–1912), Taishō period (1912–1926), and the Shōwa period (1926–1989).
• Print exhibitions change every three months. They focus on different time periods, themes, or art styles.

East Wing: Screens and Scrolls

• The exhibition space in the Pavilion's East Wing shows a changing selection of screens and hanging scrolls.
• These artworks are mostly from the Edo period.
• You can see works from famous art schools like Rimpa, ukiyo-e, and Maruyama-Shijo.
• There are also unique creations made by Zen monks.
• These artworks are displayed on six different levels within the East Wing.

Plaza Level: Miniature Netsuke Sculptures

• The plaza level has the Raymond and Frances Bushell Netsuke Gallery.
• This gallery holds a huge collection of 827 tiny sculptures called netsuke.
• These netsuke date from the 1600s through the 1900s.
• You can walk around the gallery to see these miniature sculptures from all sides.
• In traditional Japan, netsuke were used as toggles. They acted as counterweights.
• People used them to hang tobacco pouches and inro (small cases) from the sash of their kimono (traditional Japanese clothing).

The Pavilion's Unique Architecture

The Pavilion for Japanese Art was designed by Bruce Goff. It is a very special building.

Natural Lighting and Design

• The building is 32,100 square feet in size.
• It is famous for its translucent fiberglass panels.
• These panels allow soft, natural sunlight to enter the building safely.
• This natural light is perfect for viewing paintings.
• It helps you see the art almost as it was originally viewed.
• The light makes gold leaf on the art reflect. This creates a feeling of depth that artificial lights can't show.
• Japanese screens can be viewed from a distance.
• Scrolls can be seen up close in special alcove-like areas. These areas are like the tokonoma viewing space in a Japanese home.
• The pavilion also has a roof shaped like the front of a boat (a prow).
• It also features tall, round towers.
• The outdoor areas around the building were designed by Hannah Olin's firm.

History of the Pavilion

The Pavilion for Japanese Art has an interesting story behind how it came to be.

A Generous Gift

• A collector named Joe D. Price had a huge collection of Japanese scroll and screen paintings. It was called the Shin'enkan Collection.
• This collection of over 300 paintings became the main part of LACMA's Japanese art holdings.
• In 1983, Joe Price and his wife Etsuko Yoshimochi gave about 300 of these Japanese screens and scrolls to the museum.
• They also donated $5 million to help start building a home for these artworks.
• In 1987, Mr. Price also joined LACMA's board of trustees.
• The museum agreed to take care of and display the collection.
• They also promised to raise up to $2 million more to build the pavilion.
• The museum actually raised even more, about $7.5 million, in addition to the Prices' gift.

Building the Pavilion

• Bruce Goff first designed the pavilion to be built in Bartlesville, Oklahoma. That's where Joe Price had kept his large collection.
• Later, the design was changed to be a wing of the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York.
• Finally, Goff's original design was adapted for LACMA. His former assistant, Bart Prince, helped create the working drawings.
• Joe Price gave $5 million towards the building costs.
• The total cost to build the pavilion was $13 million.

Future Plans

• The Pavilion for Japanese Art is planned for renovation.
• This renovation is part of a bigger redesign of the entire LACMA campus.
• The new design for the campus is being led by architect Peter Zumthor.

Photo gallery

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  Entrance to the Pavilion.

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  The Pavilion's translucent panels.

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  A view of the East Wing.