EASC 499: Japanese Design and Gardens in Los Angeles

Taught by Miya Elise Desjardins (Adjunct Associate Professor of Art History and East Asian Languages and Cultures)

In 2017, the Japanese Foreign Ministry opened JAPAN HOUSE Los Angeles to showcase Japan—”the very best of Japanese art, design, gastronomy, innovation, technology and more”—with the stated aim of “laying the groundwork for winning international understanding of Japan.” The inauguration of JAPAN HOUSE in Hollywood provides the perfect opportunity to examine the history of the cultural relationship between Japan and Los Angeles, which began more than 100 years ago—Los Angeles has long been considered one of the primary gateways for Japanese art and culture in the United States—and the ways in which Japanese design and garden culture, in particular, have served as primary channels for how Japan has come to be “understood” across the twentieth century in Los Angeles and far beyond.

This course will begin with the era of Japonisme, Japan’s participation in World’s Fairs, and the history of Japanese Americans in Los Angeles, and consider the ways in which cultural artifacts of Japanese design and gardens have exceeded the materiality of the spaces they occupy, transforming the perception of Japan and the cultural arena of Los Angeles. We will make the Huntington Gardens our base, focusing our studies on the Huntington Japanese Garden and its structures. Several field trips to supplement our examination of Japan at the Huntington Gardens will be included. This class explores the transmigration of Japanese art and aesthetics and the politics of their adaptation and assimilation in Los Angeles/United States by surveying various design practices and topics: Japanese gardens, architecture (private homes and teahouses), interior design, tea ceremony, food, ikebana flower arranging, calligraphy, the influence of Japanese art and architecture on the mid-century modern style, and Japanese art collections in Los Angeles. The class will feature lectures by curators at The Huntington, field trips to related sites (hosted by curators), and experiential workshop sessions in ikebana, tea ceremony, food design, and calligraphy. We will read critical essays and short fictional works; survey works of art and design, and view short and feature-length documentary films.

Spring 2023 Syllabus

The class will meet on campus at USC, at The Huntington Japanese Garden, or at a field trip site. Campus sessions: lecture by the instructor, followed by discussion and group activities. Off-campus sessions: tour/lecture by our host, or a workshop session, followed by discussion. Class sessions are 3 hours but please be aware that transportation to our field trip sites will require additional time; students will be required to meet at various locations in Los Angeles and Pasadena. Please allow for travel before AND after the scheduled class time on Fridays from 10:00AM-1:00PM on-site visit days. Some sessions will be held on campus and will not require travel. Please speak with the instructor about scheduling needs.

This course will include class trips to JAPAN HOUSE Los Angeles, Yamashiro, The Huntington Japanese Garden, Schindler House, Neutra VDL, and Sam Francis exhibit at LACMA. Due to a generous gift for the EASC Landscape and Sustainability Studies Initiative, the East Asian Studies Center will be able to cover the expenses associated with these trips (transportation and entrance fees) as well as the flower arranging and/or calligraphy workshops.