June, 1919 
41 
ment is the pair of recesses known, as the 
tokonoma and the chigai-dana. 
In order to harmonize the furniture with this 
environment Japanese lines were introduced in¬ 
to the designs. The electric fixtures received 
the same treatment and the floor was covered 
with large rugs in a simple large-scale pattern. 
In the reception-room a similar combination 
of styles is found, but the walls and ceiling, 
while Japanese in detail, have an appearance 
of permanence and solidity that is foreign. 
The wall treatment of the dining room ap¬ 
proaches the European type to some degree, 
while the furniture is European in character. 
The blending of native and foreign styles in 
these rooms is probably due quite as much to a 
desire to retain so far as possible the national 
character as it is to the fact that this phase was 
in the natural order of development. 
Practically ever since Japan opened her ports 
to the rest of the world, the problem of enter¬ 
taining Europeans and Americans in a suitable 
manner has been up for solution. 
It was soon found that boot-heels damaged 
the mats or tatami that were intended to with¬ 
stand the impact of nothing more harsh than 
the cloth tabi worn by the Japanese. Then, 
too, the guests were not used to sitting on their 
, heels in the Japanese manner, and the cushions, 
which were all that their hosts were able to 
An example of the East adapted to the 
requirements of the West. The entrance 
hall in the New York home of Dr. Jokichi 
Takamine 
offer them, were but poor substitutes for 
cliairs. At first temporary and makeshift 
means were adopted to relieve the situation. 
Carpets, probably obtained from a foreign ship, 
were laid over the tatami. Chairs from the 
salon of a ship that happened to be in port 
were bought in some instances. A little later 
furniture was imported, but until very recently 
the wall treatment was always Japanese. 
It is an open question whether the latest 
])ractice of exactly following European styles is 
as desirable as an effort to create a style in 
which the practical features of European fur¬ 
niture are combined with Japanese design 
characteristics. 
A notable achievement in this direction is 
seen in the home of Dr. Jokichi Takamine on 
Riverside Drive in New York City. There 
historic Japanese decorative styles have been 
adapted to the requirements of the Occidental 
manner of living. The walls and ceilings are 
richly decorated purely in the Japanese style. 
Antique Chinese rugs of great beauty cover the 
floors. The furniture has been given a purely 
Japanese design character that brings it into 
harmony with the wall treatment. 
The second story sun 
parlor in the Kanichi 
Sumitomo residence hi 
Tokyo is really a Japa¬ 
nese living room 
(Right) Old Japanese 
in every respect except 
the electric lighting fix¬ 
ture. In the home of 
BaronSumitomo,Tokyo 
The Phoenix Temple at 
Uji is shown with gold- 
leaf background on the 
walls. Dr. Takamine’s 
New York drawingroom 
