Kitaoji Rosanjin (1883-1959) pursued fine Japanese cuisine with his high aesthetics and enhanced dining spaces into artistic one. Affirming, “Dishes are clothes for food,” Rosanjin created numerous types of dishes, which are bold and full of uniqueness. Combined with his courageous way of life, he still gains much attention today.
Rosanjin was born in Kyoto, and taught himself calligraphy and seal carving. These skills were approved and his works gained a great reputation, which led him to being invited as a guest and staying in various areas. While being served, he deepened his interest in delicious cuisine and began to make dishes for cooked food. His concept was to serve the best meals on the best dishes. Moreover, he created flower vases and paintings to pursue aesthetics for the whole dining space. It is said that Rosanjin produced two or three hundred thousand works throughout his life. The Adachi Museum has collected numerous distinguished works by Rosanjin since its establishment, and today, our collection amounts to about 400 pieces.
In this exhibition, we will exhibit about 120 works from our Rosanjin collection, celebrating the first anniversary of the Rosanjin Hall, which opened on April 1st, 2020. We will also be displaying recent acquisitions, which will be shown for the first time at the museum, as well as several representative works. We believe that you will fully enjoy the Rosanjin’s unique world of the aesthetics and Japanese cuisine, covering a wide range of different works, including ceramics, calligraphy, engraved calligraphy and paintings.