On the occasion of French President Jacques Chirac's visit to Japan in 1996, an exchange of national treasures was agreed upon for the 1998-1999 "Year of France in Japan." Following this agreement, Kudara Kannon, a 7th-century 2-meter wooden bodhisattva from Nara's Horyuji Temple, was sent to France in 1997 for a one-month exhibition at the Louvre Museum. After considering the Greek marble "Victoire (The Winged Victory)" from Samothrace, and the 19th-century Romantic masterpiece 'La Liberte guidant le peuple (Liberty Guiding the People)," France finally decided on the latter to be sent to Japan in reciprocation.
The famous "Liberty" painting (also known as "July 28") by Delacroix is currently being displayed at Ueno's Tokyo National Museum until March 28. The French masterpiece, as well as other paintings by Japanese painters of Delacroix's time, including Watanabe Kazan and Utagawa Hiroshige, are attracting about a million visitors a day.
The show's success has kept the people backstage busy -- people like Nobuyuki Kanba, head of TNM's conservation department. You could say Kanba is the main stagehand of the Japanese show. Even after the installation last month, he is still working diligently to ensure the safety of the priceless piece. "My mind can't rest until the painting goes back home safely," he said.
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