Amin Jaffer picks Plum Blossom Viewing At Night, After Harunobu by Vik Muniz

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1765, Amin Jaffer, art history, arts, bookmaker, contemporary artist, culture, digital c-print, Edo period, famous artworks, first full-colour printing technique, From the Vault at Christie’s, Harunobu, introduction, Japan, Japanese illustrator, literature, mid-Edo period, nishiki-e, photographing, photography, pictures of the floating world, Plum Blossom Viewing At Night, poems, polychrome, printer ukiyoe, prints, recreating, Suzuki, Suzuki Harunobu, ukiyoe prints, Vik Muniz, woodblock printmaking, woodblock prints

Plum Blossom Viewing At Night, After Harunobu (2012)
By Vik Muniz
Digital c-print; number one from an edition of five plus one artist’s proof
Signed and dated ‘Vik Muniz 2012’ (on a paper label affixed to the reverse)
Size: 156.2 x 100.3 centimetres (61.5 x 39.5 inches)
Estimated price: $15,000-20,000

During the Edo period (1603-1868) Japan experienced continued economic growth and social change. The era was characterised by an increasing national interest in arts and culture. Popular topics from literature and poems were depicted in woodblock prints. The artist Suzuki Harunobu (1725-1770), a Japanese illustrator, bookmaker and printer was a central figure in developing the art of ukiyoe (pictures of the floating world) woodblock printmaking during the mid-Edo period.

A Must-See Museum

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1969, Aapbara Market, Aftab Ahmed Changaizi, Allama Iqbal, arts and crafts, Azbail Raja, books, exhibits, Fatima Jinnah, field reports, folk music, Guns Club, Heritage Library, Independence Movement, International Council of Music, Islamabad Sports Complex, Jawaharlal Nehru, journals, Liaquat Ali Khan, literature, Lok Virsa, Mahatma Gandhi, manuscripts, Mr Jinnah, Mughal era, music, music and literature, National Folk Heritage Museum, National Institute of Cultural Studies, on-site publishing house, Open Air Theatre, Pak-China Friendship Centre, Pakistan Monument Museum, Pakistan’s arts, Partition, photography, poetry, The International Council Museum, the National Institute of Folk and Traditional Heritage, The World Craft Council, traditional music, UNESCO, Virsa Café, wax sculpture exhibit

Waxwork tribute to the founders (Photos: Khurram Amin)

Lok Virsa, also known as the National Folk Heritage Museum, was opened to the public over 40 years ago. Administrated by the National Institute of Folk and Traditional Heritage, the Museum is part of a vast complex dedicated to understanding, preserving and propagating Pakistan’s arts, music and literature and includes the Heritage Library and the National Institute of Cultural Studies.

Showcasing cultural history… Lok Virsa showcases Pakistan’s cultural heritage; it is the only one of its kind in Pakistan. Exhibits include ‘Antiquity and Continuity’, ‘Architecture and Woodwork’, ‘Ballads and Romances Musical Heritage’, ‘Ethnic Tribes’, ‘Jewellery and Metal Work’ and ‘Sufis and Shrines’. A newly installed wax sculpture exhibit called ‘Pakistan Monument Museum’ pays tribute to the country’s history by showcasing waxworks of prominent personalities of the Independence movement (including Mr Jinnah, Fatima Jinnah, Allama Iqbal, Liaquat Ali Khan, Jawaharlal Nehru and Mahatma Gandhi) as well as scenes from Partition and the Mughal era. The sculptures have been created by Aftab Ahmed Changaizi.

The library at Lok Virsa… The Heritage Library is a treasury of books, journals, field reports and manuscripts that explore the diverse cultural facets of Pakistan.