Claremont, CA (September 2012)–Since its eleventh century composition, The Tale of Genji has inspired everything from paintings, to kabuki plays, to anime. Now, the Ruth Chandler Williamson Gallery presents a comprehensive look at the woodblock prints influenced by this epic tale. Viewers will have the rare opportunity of seeing works from the personal collection of Paulette and Jack Lantz, which is considered the foremost collection of Genji prints. The exhibition opens on Saturday, October 27th, with a reception at the Gallery from 7 to 9 p.m. On the same day, from 4 to 5 p.m., in the Clark Humanities Museum, Dr. Sarah Thompson of the Museum of Fine Arts, Boston will present a lecture entitled “The Shining Prince on Stage: Inaka Genji in Kabuki Plays and Prints.” The events and the exhibition are free and open to the public.

This exhibition will feature a rich array of woodblock prints by many of Japan’s leading artists, drawn from both the Scripps College collection and the personal collection of Jack and Paulette Lantz. Highlights include Utagawa Kunisada’s illustrations for the popular serial novel, A Rustic Genji by a Fraudulent Murasaki, and Tsukioka Kogyo’s prints of Genji-inspired Noh plays.  The exhibition is accompanied by an elaborately illustrated book, edited by Dr. Andreas Marks and published by Hotei Publishing. The exhibition is organized by Dr. Bruce Coats, Professor of Art History and Humanities, in conjunction with two classes on Japanese arts. The book is funded in part by the Blakemore Foundation, the E. Rhodes and Leona B. Carpenter Foundation, Union Bank, and the Aoki Endowment for Japanese Arts and Cultures. After Scripps, the exhibition will travel to Depauw University, the Clark Center for Japanese Art and Culture, Vassar College, and the Morikami Museum and Japanese Gardens.

The Ruth Chandler Williamson Gallery is located in Claremont, CA, at Eleventh Street and Columbia Avenue, adjacent to Baxter Hall. During exhibitions, the Gallery is open to the public, free of charge, Wednesday through Sunday, from 1 to 5 pm. The exhibition runs through December 16. More information about the exhibition can be found at www.scrippscollege.edu/ or by calling (909) 607-7397.

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