The rediscovery of Japan : the critical reception of japanese architecture in Portugal after the opening of Japan to the west

Abstract

The aim of this paper is to provide an initial understanding of the reception given to Japanese architecture in Portuguese books and architecture-related magazines published in the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries. Two separate periods in said reception can be considered: that of the first encounter, which is directly connected to the re-establishment of ties between Portugal and Japan after the latter’s re-opening to the West in 1854, which anticipated the Portuguese adherence to Japonisme; and that of the second encounter, now in the early twentieth century, which took place against the background of discussions around progress and the affirmation of an own cultural identity in Portugal. Despite this reception, the actual influence of Japanese architecture on Portuguese works of architecture built in the period was practically zero, reflecting a certain difficulty of understanding and absorbing Japonisme on the part of the Portuguese art scene. An influence can be found only in a small number of interior designs and the design of a sales pavilion for a faience factory. The assessment of the reception given to Japanese architecture is based on interpretative-historical research, as defined by David Wang: “We define interpretative research specifically as investigations into social-physical phenomena within complex contexts, with a view toward explaining those phenomena in narrative form and in a holistic fashion.”1 The publications mentioned form the fundamental research documentation. The understanding of Japanese architecture in the two aforementioned periods is preceded by a contextualisation which clarifies the reception of Japonisme in the Portuguese art scene. Proceeding from the observations of David Wang, this paper seeks to form a narrative that can explain the circumstances and reasoning that determined both the understanding – or lack thereof – of Japanese architecture in Portugal and its divulgation in Portuguese publications. This matter is currently not the object of any other research project, giving this study a trailblazing character. The reception given to Japonisme by the Portuguese art scene is still in need of systematic research