What artists Japanese like The other day, I went to an exhibition of William Turner. It was really crowded .in the museum and l had to wait in a long queue to enter the venue. By the time I came in front of the pictures, I already got exhausted. Many Japanese who are interested in art like Turner. In fact, there is a certain taste and trend upon what artists Japanese like. For example, they like Vermeer, Monet (and other impressionists), J.E. Millais, Munch, Gustav Klimt and etc. As far as I’m concerned, there are at least 3 reasons why Japanese love such artists. First, their pictures are comparatively easy to understand because they don’t represent myths or biblical texts. If we try to appreciate religious paintings, it would be good for us to own some knowledge about stories written in Bible. In contrast, landscape paintings by impressionists doesn’t necessarily demand such background information to beholders. Next, these artists have a canonical work. In the case of Vermeer, it is Girl with a Pearl Earring, and as for Klimt, it is The Kiss. These images are simple, strong and easy to remember, and they can be seen often in media such as newspaper, TV and the Internet. The final reason I think of is that Japanese museum has a large collection of some of the artists I mentioned above. There are many works of art drawn by impressionists in Japan. Therefore, people living in Japan has a plenty of opportunities to enjoy them. I’m sure that these artist are also popular in the world, but I wonder what artists or masterpieces are especially well-known in other countries.