One of Eight Printed Nō Plays published by Kōetsu (Kōetsu-bon Yōkyoku hachiban) c. 1610

Curator: This delicate book, "One of Eight Printed Nō Plays," attributed to Hon'ami Kōetsu from the early Edo period, presents Nō drama scripts. The calligraphy feels so personal, almost intimate. What strikes you about it? Editor: The handwritten script is so beautiful and old. What's interesting to you from a cultural perspective? Curator: Knowing these plays were accessible through print suggests a shift in cultural power. How does democratizing access to art, historically reserved for the elite, influence the narratives and identities formed within society? Editor: I never considered it that way. It sounds like art had a role to play. Curator: Precisely! It makes me wonder, who was given permission to participate? What was repressed? Editor: I'm definitely going to look at art differently from now on. Curator: Me too. I will try to stay curious.