The Soft Power of Rimpa: Tracing a Fluid Creative Practice Across Space and Time

Abstract

This expository thesis builds on current knowledge of the 17th century Japanese painting school known as Rimpa. Revisiting its multifaceted history leading up to 2015, there are three pivotal moments in its 400-year-old history that shape our understanding of Rimpa as a cultural soft power. Additionally, I highlight celebratory events in 2015 as continued efforts of the repeated cooption of Rimpa’s soft power to influence public perception and inform local identity. I posit that the longevity and relevancy of Rimpa, as a creative practice, is attributed to its fluid qualities that afford it longevity, relevancy, and the ability to be repeatedly reconfigured and adapted to the visual language and concerns of the zeitgeist.