Dragons, Tigers and Bamboo - Tapa dura

The Macdonald Collection is considered the best cross-cultural porcelain collection in Canada and is among the best of its kind in the world. This is the first time the pieces have been photographed for a comprehensive catalogue. The contributors - curators and art historians - provide in-depth analysis and history of Japanese porcelain, and offer specific commentary on the pieces in the collection. Illustrated with more than 160 full-colour photographs commissioned for this volume. About the Gardiner Collection: The Gardiner Museum is internationally renowned for its collections of ceramic art. From South American religious worship to century-old British drinking games and aristocratic pursuits, the collection offers visitors a glimpse into civilizations past. Having just completed a $20 million makeover, the Gardiner Museum is also recognized as being one of Toronto's most outstanding examples of modernist architecture

Oliver Impey (1936 - 2005) was curator of Eastern art at the Ashmolean Museum, Oxford, until 2002. Author or contributor to more than thirty books, including Porcelain for Palaces and The Early Porcelain Kilns of Japan, Impey was also a friend of the Macdonalds and advised them on the formation of their collection. Christiaan J.A. Jorg is a professor of Art History at the University of Leiden. Charles Mason is Chief Curator at the Gardiner Museum of Ceramic Art, Toronto.