If you were to attempt to depict this roofed boat objectively, you would probably stand at a distance and capture it side-on. However, this work is made from the point of view of a passenger, perhaps sitting at the bow of the boat, whose eyes meet those of the woman looking this way. As a result, the boat itself is not shown as an object, but instead experienced subjectively. This is probably related to the fact that the artist, Charles Wirgman, was dispatched to China and then to Japan as a reporter for a newspaper, and his job was to capture current events and customs in sketches. Along with his British nostalgia for Japanese culture, Wirgman’s attention is directed at what is happening right in front of him.
(MINAMISHIMA Ko)
If you were to attempt to depict this roofed boat objectively, you would probably stand at a distance and capture it side-on. However, this work is made from the point of view of a passenger, perhaps sitting at the bow of the boat, whose eyes meet those of the woman looking this way. As a result, the boat itself is not shown as an object, but instead experienced subjectively. This is probably related to the fact that the artist, Charles Wirgman, was dispatched to China and then to Japan as a reporter for a newspaper, and his job was to capture current events and customs in sketches. Along with his British nostalgia for Japanese culture, Wirgman’s attention is directed at what is happening right in front of him.
(MINAMISHIMA Ko)