New Orleans — This fall, the New Orleans Museum of Art is opening a window onto one of Japan’s most luminous art traditions. Second Nature: Japanese Rinpa Paintings from the Gitter-Yelen Collection opened October 2, 2026, presenting nearly 60 works that explore the shimmering world of Rinpa, a distinctive school of Japan’s Edo period (1615–1868).
Rinpa artists combined specialized ink painting techniques with a glowing, polychrome palette in compositions depicting the natural world — flowers, birds, water and wind rendered in gold, silver and vivid color. The exhibition includes hanging scrolls, folding screens, fans, albums and handscrolls, as well as ceramics and decorative arts, drawn primarily from the remarkable collection of Alice Yelen Gitter and the late Dr. Kurt A. Gitter, with additional works from NOMA’s own collection.
The show offers new insights into the role of artist Sakai Hōitsu in defining the style, and was organized with guest curator Yukio Lippit of Harvard University. A companion installation, Good Fortunes: 50 Years of Japanese Art at NOMA, celebrates five decades of Japanese art at the museum.
The exhibition is on view at NOMA in City Park. Visitors can also celebrate the opening after hours at the October edition of NOMA at Night, with live music, gallery talks, art-making and specialty cocktails.
Photo: Wikimedia Commons (public domain)
