Sponsoring of the exhibition “The Art of ZEN From Mind to Form”

April 5, 2016

Nissha Printing Co.,Ltd.

Nissha Printing Co., Ltd. (hereinafter "Nissha") performs activity for the purpose of  "promotion and support of arts and culture" advocating in the Basic Social Contribution Policy. As the part, Nissha is a cosponsor of the exhibition "The Art of ZEN From Mind to Form" in Kyoto National Museum from April 12 to May 22, 2016.

Zen is one of the words most commonly associated with Japan, but in reality it is a tradition that originated in India with the First Zen Patriarch Bodhidharma, thought to have lived in the late 400s and early 500s. From there Zen was transmitted to China, where it was called Chan, later arriving in Japan during the Kamakura period (1185–1333).
Two branches of Zen in Japan, Rinzai and Ōbaku, trace their lineages back to the Chinese Chan priest Linji Yixuan (J: Rinzai Gigen, died 866). The year 2016 marks the 1150th anniversary of Linji's death; it is also a year of grand rituals honoring the 250th memorial of the death of Hakuin Ekaku (1685–1768), the Japanese Rinzai Zen priest who revived the sect in the mid-Edo period. This exhibition The Art of Zen: From Mind to Form, commemorates these two milestones.
There are fifteen major Rinzai and Ōbaku Zen temples in Japan today, all of whom have thrown their full support behind this project. For this reason, the exhibition will feature a selection unprecedented in quantity and quality of portraits, calligraphy, sculpture, paintings, and decorative or ritual objects, including many of the greatest masterpieces associated with Zen. There will be several rotations of the galleries in order to show a total of nearly 220 works over the course of the exhibition. Over half of these are registered National Treasures or Important Cultural Properties—a never before assemblage of Japan’s rarest and most significant Zen-related artworks. (*Quotation from the official website)

Exhibition overview

Schedule April 12th to May 22nd, 2016
Closed on Mondays
Hours of opening 9:30 - 18:00 (Fridays open until 20:00)
Admission by 30 minutes of before closing
Venue Kyoto National Museum Heisei Chishinkan Wing
Official web site The Art of ZEN From Mind to Form
- The content of the web is information at press time, may change thereafter without notice. Due to risks and uncertainties, predictions may differ from actual results. Please be forewarned.
- "Nissha" is a generic name of Nissha Co., Ltd. and "Nissha Group" is a Nissha Co., Ltd. and its group companies.

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