Dancing with the Fan

Abstract

The article addresses several issues concerning a Japanese fan and the kimonos found in the collection of Ivan Skušek from Slovene Ethnographic Museum. They belonged to Ivan Skušek’s Japanese wife Marija Tsuneko Skušek, and were after her death donated to the museum together with other objects from the Skušek collection. With analysing these items and researching the life of Marija Tsuneko Skušek the article discusses the roles these objects had in transmitting Japanese culture to Slovene audience with a focus on the Japanese dances as one way of transmission. During her life in Ljubljana, Marija Skušek in one way adopted to the Slovene society very quickly, but on the other hand she presented Japanese culture and her identity in several lectures along with Japanese songs, dances and a tea ceremony. With researching the roles and values of these object in the museum collection, the article also discusses the importance of understanding not only the physical appearance of the items and their life, but also the wider background of items and collection, focusing also on the owner of these items in the relation to the collector. It is also important to stress how these objects transformed from daily objects of use to rarefied art after they were handed over to the museum, and within this process their value also changed.