Harunobu Suzuki

[@glenncbjones]

Dearest Little Art Museum! Thank you for covering the work of this wonderful artist! Even though I don’t possess even one of his images (except in books!) he is an all time favorite! A small question does surface in regard to this post and to this artist, however, and as my dear LAM apparently never speaks (but only wags its tail!), I won’t anticipate an answer… My question pertains to why you have chosen to indicate the artist’s name as “Haranobu Suzuki,” rather than the “Suzuki Haranobu,” found in all of my sourcebooks? It is my understanding that in Japan, Korea and China (and I’m guessing Asia in general), the family (or “artist”) name would traditionally come first, and the personal, or “given” name, would then follow, but here we have just the opposite, as is the custom in the west… I realize that the two styles of “nomenclature” (I’m not certain that that’s the right word, but I’m going to use it!) were brought into focus and mild opposition after WWII, when young Japanese who were increasingly working alongside American co-workers began to affect names like “Jimmy Suzuki,” and “Susan Choy,” but I believe that the western style of personal name first, then middle and/or “Saint” name(s), then family (usually both paternal and maternal and then hyphenated in Spanish!), is best avoided! For one thing, it has the potential to confuse the art enthusiast or art researcher in seeking a given artist in a table of contents or index, but perhaps most importantly, because it feels like just another pointless concession to the west, and while I am all about considerations and concessions (and all kinds of human kindness, as a rule of thumb!), I think that perhaps way too many such concessions have been made to the west already, and to little positive result! OK, that wasn’t so bad, was it? Scarcely what we might call a “rant” (which things Americans may be better at than anyone this side of Hindustan!)… And all at LAM should know that I still love them, firstly, because true love is not volitional, and then secondly, because I would always anyway… - XOXOXO! Glenn Jones (USA)