Prince Yasuhiko was injured in France in 1923 and had to convalesce there for over 2.5 years. His wife traveled over to Paris to be with him and together they discovered Art Deco. They were smitten. The Art Deco Exhibition of 1925 influenced them greatly and they hired French artist Henri Rapin to work with the Imperial Household Ministry to realize their vision. The house was completed in 1933 and it was the family residence up until 1947. At that time the family lost their Imperial status and the house became the Prime Minister's residence for a while and then a guest house for state and official visitors to Japan. In 1983 it was opened up to the public as the Teien Art Museum. Just before we toured the museum a new way of showcasing the art and artifacts was put into place. It was the A to Z system. Each room had one or two items that were of special interest, for instance in the official waiting room the wallpaper was from Tekko and that was the "T" item. In the anteroom there is a sculpture called Perfumed Fountain and that was the "P" item. It was a fun way to keep people engaged and many times it would draw the viewer in towards a detail that they may very well have missed entirely. The items did not appear alphabetically as the viewer made it thorough the house. The first room was the front entrance hall and it had the "S" item, Satine which is term used for the treatment of the etched glass windows found int this area. The second room was the great hall which had the "U" item. Uneven harmony describes the entirety of the great hall with its rounded arches contrasting with the strong vertical lines and multiple right angles of the ceiling lights. In each room there were notecards describing both the room and the A to Z item. At the end there was a table where visitors could punch holes and bind all these cards together to make a book.
The annex to the main house
Woof!
The stairs leading up to the second floor
Uneven Harmony the grand into the great hall
If only we had some clothes!
The Satine finish on the pressed glass
One of a kind items by Rene Lalique
The Perfumed Fountain
All of the lighting fixtures were pure deco
Ready to fly
Great details in every part of the room
Beautiful and functional
Low Key fireplace
Flower motifs
A round view of the gardens
Not just any door
Air vents with fish
Another great fireplace
Up to the second floor
A sconce
Great wooden ceiling
A modern door made to look deco
The huge safe within its own room
Great grate
The use of Japanese wood was deliberate
The use of wood was the "J" item
Huge slabs of Camphor wood
A sculptural element
Nice hang
A lamp on the finial of the staircase
Some stained glass
Upstairs in the study, a square room made to look circular
Lemon wood
Great hardware on the door
Serious hinges
More grate magic
Domed ceiling
Picnic time outside
A shared space for the Prince and Princess
Nothing square about this hip lanp
The Princess studied watercolor and oil painting to be able to better appreciate her surroundings
The only bathroom that was renovated
Fantastic doors
A pointy head-knocker
The tiles in this room were chilled to ease the summer heat
A radiator cover
Fancy dresses of the times
Back in Paris
These look like pearls
A wild beastie!
Wall paper samples
Another one of the Satin ladies in the annex
A sample of the hardware used in the building
A spare door made of the finest Japanese wood
Three doors in one!
