Until the last century, the main influences on Japanese art came from China and Korea, but a distinct Japanese aesthetic was present from early on. There is a fascination with the ephemeral (such as in ikebana, the art of flower arrangement), with the unadorned, and with forms that echo the randomness of nature. A gift for caricature is also present, from early Zen ink paintings right up to the manga (comics) of contemporary Japan. There is a wildness and passion and an interest in the grotesque or the bizarre visible in many works, from Buddhist scrolls depicting the horrors of hell to the highly stylised renderings of body parts in the wood-block prints of the Edo period.
"Ikebana," Japanese flower arrangement
The Japanese aesthetic is writ large in its architecture, from graceful Shinto shrines and Buddhist temples, to elaborate castles and practical gossamer-thin houses (built to keep cool in summer and to crumple lightly in earthquakes). Precise physical composition is also evident in Japanese gardens, meticulously planned no matter how haphazard they may look. The two most famous Japanese performance traditions are kabuki (melodramatic, spectacular theatre) and no (formal, masked theatre), both of which can be seen in Tokyo, Kyoto and Osaka. Ancient Japanese gagaku uses drums and Japanese instruments resembling the lute, plucked zither, oboe and flute. Pop music is massive in Japan: indigenous groups usually feature a gorgeous lead singer of irrelevant talents. Girl punk groups have recently been getting a good airing in the hungry world of indie music
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