Impact of Ikebana and Bonsai on Japonisme in Space Design in Interwar Britain : An Analysis of the Images in the Studio Magazine

Abstract

This article argues that Japonisme and modernism in inter-war Britain had a dual relation: Japonisme was a venue to introduce modernist elements in British interior design, and also, modernism worked as a shadow of Japanese representation in the time of growing political stress with Japan. It overviews the history of British reception of Japanese interior design, Ikebana and Bonsai. Then it discusses how the Japanese themselves began to describe the characteristics of Japanese green culture and interior design from the analysis of The Studio and Japanese display at international exhibitions. Finally, it reveals how the designs of Ikebana and Bonsai were applied to the Western visual culture, thus consuming the Japanese elements as a 'style'.