Jul

In the news

James Ulak, deputy director and senior curator of Japanese art at the Freer Gallery of Art and Arthur M. Sackler Galleries, has been selected to receive the “Order of the Rising Sun,” an award conferred by the Japanese government for exceptional civil or military merit. The Order is presented in recognition of Ulak’s significant career contributions in the service of strengthening bilateral relations and building collaboration between public and private fine arts institutions in Japan and the United States, resulting in the sophisticated presentation of Japanese visual culture in both countries.

Deputy Director Dr. James T. Ulak and Ichiro Fujisaki, Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of Japan to the United States of America (Photo by John Tsantes)

Ulak is one of 62 individuals selected worldwide in 2010 to receive the Order, founded in 1875 by Emperor Meiji of Japan. The “Order of the Rising Sun: Gold Rays with Rosette” was conferred by Ambassador Ichiro Fujisaki July 6 in a private ceremony at the Ambassador’s Residence in Washington, D.C.

A specialist in the history of Japanese narrative painting production in 14th and 15th centuries, Ulak has published on a wide range of topics in Japanese art. For more than 30 years as an art historian, curator and administrator, he has helped to organize significant exhibitions of Japanese art, often in conjunction with Japan’s Agency for Cultural Affairs, established programs of specialized personnel exchange in the areas of art history scholarship and fine arts conservation and contributed to the expansion of U.S. collections of Japanese art.

“For some three decades, in his multiple capacities as scholar, curator, teacher, administrator and cultural ambassador, James Ulak has played a highly meaningful role in deepening the understanding of Japanese artistic traditions in the English-language sphere and beyond,” said Yukio Lippit, Harvard University professor and distinguished scholar in the field of Japanese painting. “His exhibitions have explored cultural narratives of many kinds, revolving around everything from Japanese Buddhist art to modern visual culture. Permeating all of Dr. Ulak’s activities is a deeply held conviction that the highest achievements of Japanese art embody a unique way of experiencing the world, one with enormous potential to enrich the present. Indeed, it is no surprise that he inspires remarkable trust and respect throughout the Japanese art world.”

Ichiro Fujisaki; Kim Sammis (Mrs. James Ulak); James Ulak; and Yoriko Fujisaki, wife of the Ambassador of Japan. (Photo by John Tsantes)

Ulak joined the staff of the galleries as curator of Japanese art in 1995, after serving as associate curator of Japanese art at the Art Institute of Chicago (1989-1994) and associate curator of Asian art at the Yale University Art Gallery (1987-1989). He holds a doctorate in Japanese art history from Case Western Reserve University in Ohio.