Douglas Wagner is the curatorial assistant in the Asian art department. He has worked in various departments at the Denver Art Museum since 1997 and for the Asian art department since 2006. He recommends that visitors don't miss the Walter + Mona Lutz Gallery, the only one in the United States devoted solely to bamboo art from China, Korea and Japan.
Each suit of armor in the Ann and Gabriel Barbier-Mueller collection now on view at the Denver Art Museum tells a story about the samurai who commissioned it and the time in which he lived. The history of Japan’s warring-states period, which lasted from 1467 to 1600, is filled with stories of famous battles and brilliant samurai warriors. The central military government under the shogun had broken down, and daimyo, powerful warlords ruling their clans and provinces, waged war against one another for control of the country. Leading armies of tens of thousands, three daimyo stood out as the most successful warriors of their time, becoming known as the three unifiers of Japan.
Oda Nobunaga (1534-1582)
Ruler of Owari, a coastal province in central Japan, Nobunaga was a ruthless warrior who skillfully adapted new methods to his battlefield tactics. He is known for his interest in western technology which began entering Japan with the arrival of the Portuguese in 1543. He clashed with Buddhist monasteries and warrior monks who possessed great political power, and with other famous daimyo of the period, including Uesugi Kenshin of Echigo, and Takeda Shingen of Kai. Oda won his most decisive battle at Nagashino in 1575 through the use of muskets, defeating Shingen’s son, Katsuyori and destroying the Takeda clan, paving Oda’s path to control.
At the pinnacle of his power Nobunaga succeeded in occupying the imperial capitol of Kyoto, but was betrayed by one of his generals, Akechi Mitsuhide, and was forced to commit suicide in the temple of Honno-ji while his enemy set it alight.
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Douglas Wagner is the curatorial assistant in the Asian art department. He has worked in various departments at the Denver Art Museum since 1997 and for the Asian art department since 2006. He recommends that visitors don't miss the Walter + Mona Lutz Gallery, the only one in the United States devoted solely to bamboo art from China, Korea and Japan.
Each suit of armor in the Ann and Gabriel Barbier-Mueller collection now on view at the Denver Art Museum tells a story about the samurai who commissioned it and the time in which he lived. The history of Japan’s warring-states period, which lasted from 1467 to 1600, is filled with stories of famous battles and brilliant samurai warriors. The central military government under the shogun had broken down, and daimyo, powerful warlords ruling their clans and provinces, waged war against one another for control of the country. Leading armies of tens of thousands, three daimyo stood out as the most successful warriors of their time, becoming known as the three unifiers of Japan.
Oda Nobunaga (1534-1582)
Ruler of Owari, a coastal province in central Japan, Nobunaga was a ruthless warrior who skillfully adapted new methods to his battlefield tactics. He is known for his interest in western technology which began entering Japan with the arrival of the Portuguese in 1543. He clashed with Buddhist monasteries and warrior monks who possessed great political power, and with other famous daimyo of the period, including Uesugi Kenshin of Echigo, and Takeda Shingen of Kai. Oda won his most decisive battle at Nagashino in 1575 through the use of muskets, defeating Shingen’s son, Katsuyori and destroying the Takeda clan, paving Oda’s path to control.
At the pinnacle of his power Nobunaga succeeded in occupying the imperial capitol of Kyoto, but was betrayed by one of his generals, Akechi Mitsuhide, and was forced to commit suicide in the temple of Honno-ji while his enemy set it alight.