Three centuries of Japanese art and culture are showcased in an ambitious new exhibition at Milan's Palazzo Reale, with some 100 masterpieces on rare loan from Japan, including pieces designated 'national treasures'. The displays include stunning screens, beautiful paper and silk wall hangings, ceramic and lacquer creations, weapons, fabrics and masks. The show seeks to trace the transition of Japanese culture from a medieval age to early modernity, covering the period 1568 to 1868.

It is divided into two sections, each of which focusing on a different culture and reflecting the tension between Japan's two centres of power: Edo (modern-day Tokyo), which was the administrative capital, and Miyako (Kyoto), the country's imperial capital. The first part of the exhibit covers the years 1568 to 1615, named the Momoyama period, after the area near Miyako with its many castles. Although wracked by civil war, this period enjoyed an artistic boom, marked by rich colours and highly expressive paintings.

Popular subjects were landscapes, animals and scenes drawn from Japanese tradition. Such paintings were much sought after by the country's emerging nobility, keen to adorn their castles with status symbols. The second part of the exhibit, covering the Edo period, takes its name from the small village that grew into the most populous city in the world. The years 1618 to 1868 were largely ones of peace that saw a period of artistic modernization and the spread of paintings and later prints featuring images of everyday life, such as trading, crafts and festivities. Mythology and battle scenes also remained popular, particularly among the Japanese elite, while another major trend was the passion for 'Nanga' art, inspired by Chinese culture and landscapes.

A later section looks at the turbulent relationship between the Japanese and Westerners, known as ''nanban'', or southern barbarians. It also touches on how the Japanese viewed Western concepts of geography, medicine, astronomy, art and science brought into the country by Dutch traders and consequently called ''rangaku'' ('Dutch studies'). 'Giappone. Potere e Splendore 1568-1868' ('Japan. Power and Splendour: 1569-1868') runs at the Palazzo Reale until March 8.