EIVIND ECKBO AND THE JAPONISME MOVEMENT

During his world trip in 1906, the Norwegian Eivind Eckbo spent three months in Japan. There, he visited Shinto sanctuaries, photographed everyday life, and developed a deep fascination with Japanese culture. This took place within the context of the Japonism movement, which developed in Europe at the end of the 19th century. His fascination became a lifelong passion that is evident in his numerous photographs and a collection of Japanese art objects, including several ukiyo-e, Japanese woodblock prints from the 17th to the 19th century. The publication not only highlights the great connection between Eivind Eckbo — who founded the Eckbo Foundation with his wife, Alice Mary Higford, in 1923 — and Japanese art and culture, but also uses this previously unpublished collection to illustrate the heyday of extraordinary Japanese art objects during the Meiji period.