Shunga, educational erotic art
Shunga means something like Spring-images and originated in the Edo period (1600-1868) in Japan.
Spring is a euphemism for sex in Japan.
This erotic art form consists of highly pornographic images.
Shunga is expressed by ink drawings or woodblock prints...
The images that appear are often of people partially dressed in a beautiful kimono in a great variety of erotic positions.
Homosexuality was also recognized and encouraged with the help of these images.
These prints were also very popular as a wedding gift to the bride or to young couples as a kind of sexual instruction manual.
So, Shunga was partially also seen as sexual education.
In addition to the educational sense, Shunga was also used as a talisman and had a protective function in your home.
Also, Shunga images were gifted as encouragement to warriors who went off to battle.
Shunga was thus seen not only as pornographic but also as educational and as a talisman.
Shunga's erotic art is anything but taboo
This Japanese erotic art actually encompasses so much meaning beyond the literal pornographic intention.
Humor was also thought of and many Shunga images contain for example comical texts and genitalia were often hugely exaggerated.
The texts often were conversations between the depicted lovers, partially dressed in kimono, entwined in a sex position.
This erotic art originated as a kind of extension of the normalization of sex, which is very much part of the traditional religion of Japan, Shinto.
According to the Shinto belief sex is something very normal and in the Shinto mythology we find, for example, that the very first Japanese island Onogoro was
created by a sexual act...
The island of Onogoro was created by the symbolic ejaculation of the god Izanagi, while all other islands literally came from the womb of his wife, the goddess
Izanami.
Well, of course it's normal to have sex and there shouldn't be any taboo attached to it, but all too often it is still viewed differently worldwide.
With sex and Shunga in mind, don a beautiful kimono
The kimono, which you often see in the erotic art of Shunga, is of course also Japanese...
The real Japanese silk kimonos are often colorful and beautifully decorated with all sorts of embroidered images or patterns.
Meanwhile, the word kimono has been adopted by designer nightwear labels as thé word for dressing gown or robe.
Many designers of luxury nightwear are also only too happy to be inspired by the shape of the original kimono, but the designer nightwear labels mainly add their own twist in terms of material and design.
At Pleasurements you'll find a delightful collection of luxury kimonos from the best, most prominent and celebrated designer nightwear brands.
Let yourself be fully seduced by the silk kimono by Marjolaine for example.
This black-silk gem by Marjolaine features a floral pattern, has a beautiful contrasting olive-green silk lining and you can clearly see the Japanese allure in
this deliciously beautiful work of art...
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Images: from a variety of sources including google images
