In accordance with wishes expressed by the late John Scott Bradstreet, who
was deeply interested in the work of the Society of Fine Arts, his
sisters, Mrs. Elizabeth B. Carleton and Mrs. Margaret Kimball, at the
opening of the new building, presented to the Society a collection of
Japanese objects collected by Mr. Bradstreet, and arranged for the
installation of them in the gallery now known as the John Scott Bradstreet
Memorial Room. The room is much appreciated by visitors to the Institute.
Restful and marked by delightful harmony of color and form, it is a room
such as all the friends of Mr. Bradstreet feel sure he would have
approved, if he had been spared to witness the success of the movement for
which he cared so much.
The visitor, entering the gallery, will probably notice first of all the
large bronze bowl with a dragon coiling about the base, exhibited in the
center of the room. On the right-hand wall, the central space is occupied
by a large cupboard of sugi wood (Japanese cedar). The sliding doors are
decorated with a continuous design of blossoming plum branches. Above the
cabinet, on four panels, is painted a splendid design of lotus flowers and
leaves in green, black, white, and gold on the natural surface of the
wood. A stone garden ornament representing a cock perched on a drum
stands to the right of the cupboard. To the left is a screen of carved
wood, topped by the upward curving horizontal, symbol of Shintoism, and
decorated by delightfully fantastic carvings showing kylins among cloud
scrolls. Against the wall opposite the door stands an elaborate temple
table covered with gold lacquer and decorations in color, including a
band, beneath the top, of pleasing little panels in pierced carving based
on bird and flower motives. On the left-hand side of the room are two
cabinets made of richly grained sugi, the sliding doors decorated with
painted lotus and crysanthemum designs. On the cabinets stand a musical
instrument, a carved wood Buddha of benignly spiritual expression, and
other objects. On the wall are two carved wood panels and a few woodblock
prints of the early XIX century. A case contains some rich examples of
brocade, including two priest’s robes. Near the door hangs a bronze
portrait relief of Mr. Bradstreet, which was executed by Paul Fjelde, the
son of Jacob Fjelde, known to the people of Minneapolis through his
statues of Ole Bull and Hiawatha. It is the gift of about one hundred of
Mr. Bradstreet’s friends. The portrait is modeled in low relief, and the
decorative element of the Japanese tree introduced on one side suggests
Mr. Bradstreet’s fondness for Oriental Art. The relief has received high
commendation both as a likeness and as a work of art.
[Color Print. Yeizan, flourished 1800-1830]