Pola Museum of Art
Tsuguharu Foujita, "Homage to La Fontaine," 1949
The scene depicts a family of anthropomorphic foxes gathered around a dinner table. The children are fighting and eating rudely on the floor, preventing the foxes from starting to eat. The interior of the room where the scene is set features the kitchen, staircase, and fireplace seen in a maquette (architectural model) that Fujita created in 1948 as his ideal home, and a painting of a crow and a fox hangs on the wall. This painting depicts a scene from "The Crow and the Fox," one of 12 volumes of Fables by 17th-century author Jean de La Fontaine. The crow is about to eat cheese when the fox flatters him for his beautiful voice. Just as he is about to speak, he drops the cheese and it is stolen from him.
This work, "Homage to La Fontaine," was created by Foujita during his approximately 10-month stay in New York, where he left Japan in March 1949, before arriving in Paris. Deeply hurt by the criticism he received for producing war paintings during World War II, Foujita departed from Haneda Airport with the resolve never to return to his native Japan. However, in New York, filled with a sense of liberation, Foujita once again took up his creative activities with enthusiasm.
In New York in 1949, Fujita mainly produced portraits of women and anthropomorphic animal works reminiscent of fables, such as "Ode to La Fontaine." Fujita was particularly adept at anthropomorphizing cats, and "Cat's Classroom," which is housed in our museum, is a representative example of this. Like "Ode to La Fontaine," "Cat's Classroom," created in New York in 1949, is also full of dynamism and rich colors, and one can imagine Fujita having rediscovered his love and motivation for creative activities.
Karuizawa Ando Museum of Art
Tsuguharu Foujita, Cat Classroom, 1949
The cats in this work are studying in a school classroom just like humans. There are teachers asking questions, cats answering seriously, cats facing away from the teacher, cats fighting, and even cats lying on the floor. This scene, depicting an ordinary, joyous day at school in New York after World War II, seems to convey the joy of an era in which peace has been restored.
The work fully captures Fujita's signature feline expressions, including the fine whiskers and furry details he has drawn with a face brush, as well as the humorous expressions of the cats. Cat Classroom, part of a series that transcends the boundaries of cat art and anthropomorphizes animals, can be said to be a valuable work that represents Fujita's work in New York, along with Homage to La Fontaine.
About the Pola Museum of Art
The Pola Museum of Art opened in Hakone, Kanagawa Prefecture, in 2002. Since its opening, it has maintained the concept of "the symbiosis of Hakone's nature and art." The building, which takes into consideration the nature and landscape of Hakone, is limited to a height of just 8 meters above ground, with most of the building located underground, allowing it to blend into the forest.
The collection of approximately 10,000 items was primarily amassed over 40 years by the late Tsuneji Suzuki, the second-generation founder of Pola, and includes a wide variety of works, from Western paintings, Japanese Western paintings, Japanese paintings, prints, Oriental ceramics, glass art, cosmetic tools from all over the world and throughout history, to contemporary art. The collection also includes approximately 220 works by Tsuguharu Foujita, one of the pillars of the Pola Museum of Art collection, spanning from his early to later years.
Excellent artworks, abundant nature, and an architectural space filled with light... The concept of "symbiosis" is alive and well in the museum.
For more information on the works of Tsuguharu Foujita housed at the Pola Museum of Art, click here
Pola Museum of Art 1285 Kozukayama, Sengokuhara, Hakone-machi, Ashigarashimo-gun, Kanagawa Prefecture, 250-0631
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