From a peach-shaped helmet topped with golden antlers and a quiver covered in wild boar fur to iron sleeves adorned with silver clouds and even full suits of horse armor, complete with fierce masks made to fit long equine noses, it's clear that there was a true art to war among Japan's iconic samurai.

"People are so drawn in by the colors, by just the absolutely insane artistry of them, the amount of work that was put into these," said Kalyn Fay Barnoski, assistant curator of Native art at Tulsa's Philbrook Museum of Art.

"With these full armors, it would take five armorers a full year to make one suit of armor in a more distinguished way, like a Kamakura Period one. ... I think that's fascinating to people, just to see the amount of detail in each suit."

Through Aug. 3, the Philbrook Museum is hosting the exhibit "Samurai: Armor from the Collection of Ann and Gabriel Barbier-Mueller," which explores the culture, lifestyle and art of the samurai warrior in Japanese society.

The exhibit "Samurai: Armor from the Collection of Ann and Gabriel Barbier-Mueller," which spotlights the culture, lifestyle, and art of the samurai warrior in Japanese society, is on view Friday, March 21, 2025, at the Philbrook Museum of Art in Tulsa. On view through Aug. 3 at the Philbrook, the exhibition spans almost nine centuries of Samurai armor, from the Kamakura period (1185-1333) to the Edo period (1603-1868) and includes nearly 80 objects – full suits, helmets, weaponry and full horse armor – all used for both combat and ceremonial purposes.

The traveling exhibition features samurai armor spanning almost nine centuries, from the Kamakura period (1185-1333) to the Edo period (1603-1868). It includes nearly 80 objects, from full suits of armor, helmets and full horse armor to weaponry like blades, bows and arrows and even at least one matchlock gun, all used for both combat and ceremonial purposes.

"Even when it was made in a more peaceful period, you don't know it's a peaceful period until you're looking with 20-20 vision back. So, even though the armor becomes extensively more beautiful, it is still meant to be used for battle," Barnoski said.

"Especially these helmets ... because they have been passed down generationally through different families and clans, the helmet is always the oldest part of a suit. And a lot of them have seen battle, or have seen moments of fighting or warfare."

What can Philbrook visitors learn from the 'Samurai' exhibit?

Sprawling about 5,000 square feet, the "Samurai" exhibit at Philbrook is taken from the vast Ann & Gabriel Barbier-Mueller Museum: The Samurai Collection, which has its permanent home in Dallas. Established in Dallas' Harwood District in 2012, The Samurai Collection is billed as the only museum of its kind in the United States and is now one of the largest in the world.

"This was an opportunity to help educate and help people see themselves reflected in a culture that's so far away, but it still is true to the objects themselves and the culture itself," Barnoski said. "America itself is only 250-ish years old ... so I think when people are able to see themselves reflected in objects made in the 13th century, that is pretty fascinating to them."

In tracing the evolution of the armor from medieval times to early modern Japan, the traveling show explores the artistic legacy of the samurai and offers a glimpse of samurai history spanning more than 700 years.

"People have a specific view about samurais and warrior culture, and my background is in Native (American) art and contemporary art. So, we were trying to find a way in which we can present it that focuses more on the artistry of the armor and offering space for the artists who created those objects, as opposed to just focusing on the violence or the war culture," said Barnoski, a Cherokee Nation citizen of Muscogee descent.

"We're talking about the embedded belief systems, worldviews and lifeways that exist in all these objects that really do intersect with my own understanding of plains and prairie warrior culture, being a Native person myself."

Visitors explore the exhibit "Samurai: Armor from the Collection of Ann and Gabriel Barbier-Mueller," which spotlights the culture, lifestyle, and art of the samurai warrior in Japanese society, is on view Friday, March 21, 2025, at the Philbrook Museum of Art in Tulsa. Continuing through Aug. 3 at the Philbrook, the exhibition spans almost nine centuries of Samurai armor, from the Kamakura period (1185-1333) to the Edo period (1603-1868) and includes nearly 80 objects – full suits, helmets, weaponry and full horse armor – all used for both combat and ceremonial purposes.

The samurai belonged to the intellectual elite of Japanese society and practiced creative disciplines that often contrasted with the vicious nature of battle. Their armorers were master artists who worked to create beautiful pieces that would both distinguish the wearer and protect him in combat.

"They've got bushido code, they've got this way of moving through the world that's inspired by the natural world, inspired by these ways in which they're able to connect themselves with the sort of metaphysical. You're looking at poetry, calligraphy, reading and writing embedded in this warrior culture," Barnoski said.

"I think people are fascinated that you can still have this ... code of honor and justice and care for the things around you, even while you're fighting for the things that you believe in."

How is the Philbrook Museum sharing some of the Japanese art in its own collection in conjunction with 'Samurai?'

In conjuction with "Samurai," the Philbrook is showing "Japonisme: New Perspectives from the Land of the Rising Sun," an exhibit of 60 paintings, prints and decorative art items from the museum's permanent collection.

Recently extended through Jan. 3, 2026, the "Japonisme" exhibit highlights the connections between Japanese art and American and European art from 1860 to 1920.

"We have a really eclectic collection. ... Most of it is American and European (art), but we've got really terrific holdings in Asian art. It's a relatively small Japanese collection, but many of the objects — including the two screens that are on display right now — belonged to Joe Price, who was based in Bartlesville. He went on to donate the majority of his collection to LACMA (Los Angeles County Museum of Art), where they built an entire wing to house his collection," said Rachel Keith, Philbrook's deputy director for audience engagement and curatorial affairs.

"He was one of the most significant collectors of Japanese art in America, and so we've got, again, not a huge number, but really lovely objects that we don't have — from my perspective, at least — enough reasons to get them out. So, I'm happy to jump at any opportunity that we can to highlight them."

She noted that Japan’s borders were mostly closed to outsiders for centuries until the 1850s, when the country opened up to trade and travel. Japanese goods hit markets across Europe and America, causing an international craze known as “Japonisme.” Japanese visual language influenced Impressionism, Post-Impressionism and Art Nouveau, among other art styles and movements.

The exhibit "Japonisme: New Perspectives from the Land of the Rising Sun" at the Philbrook Museum of Art in Tulsa features 60 paintings, prints and decorative art items that highlight the connections between Japanese art and American and European art from the period 1860 to 1920. The exhibit will be on view through Jan. 3, 2026, at the Philbrook.

Central to the exhibit is the 1914 oil on canvas painting "The Gold Screen," a recently acquired work by Lilla Cabot Perry (1848-1933), an American artist who stood at the intersection of French Impressionism, Impressionism in the U.S. and Japanese art. She played a key role in cross-cultural exchanges among these groups, introducing American audiences to French Impressionism and later connecting Japanese and American artists.

As she traveled between the U.S. and France, where she lived next door to Claude Monet, Perry brought back both artworks and ideas, becoming a vital conduit for Americans to view and embrace the revolutionary new painting style of Impressionism.

"This exhibition really begins in the late 1850s, which is when Commodore Perry opened Japan to trade. One of the really interesting things about Lilla Cabot Perry as an artist was this really unique situation that she had where Commodore Perry was her husband's uncle. So, there was a very direct connection to Japan through her family. She also really developed a close connection with Monet," Keith said.

The Philbrook exhibit includes dozens of Japanese woodblock prints from artists like Utagawa Hiroshige, Utagawa Kuniyoshi and Utagawa Kunisada, plus gilded and painted Japanese screens from the 18th and 19th centuries.

"Japonisme" also features works by American and British artists William Merritt Chase, Julia Bracewell Folkard, Frederick Carl Frieseke, Winslow Homer, Max Weber and James Abbott McNeill Whistler to show the diverse ways Japanese art influenced artists from the West — and in some cases, how Japanese artists borrowed back from those artists of the West.

The exhibit "Samurai: Armor from the Collection of Ann and Gabriel Barbier-Mueller," which spotlights the culture, lifestyle, and art of the samurai warrior in Japanese society, is on view Friday, March 21, 2025, at the Philbrook Museum of Art in Tulsa. Continuing through Aug. 3 at the Philbrook, the exhibition not only includes nearly 80 objects – full suits, helmets, weaponry and full horse armor – but it also looks at the influence of samurai traditions on global popular culture.

How is the Philbrook Museum of Art celebrating its special exhibit with Samurai Week?

Although the focus is the Japanese armor, weaponry and other objects dating back hundreds of years, the traveling "Samurai" exhibit includes a collage of posters and video clips from movies and television shows influenced by the warrior culture, from the "Star Wars" saga and "The Magnificent Seven" to "Shogun" and "Samurai Jack."

"Something that I think is super unique about the exhibition is the ability to be up close and personal. So, many of the objects — and there's a lot of them — are behind glass, just for safety of the object. ... But people are still able to have a really up-close experience and see a lot of the objects all the way around in a 360-(degree) view," said Barnoski, the Philbrook assistant curator.

"It's pretty wild. You can see it on TV. You can see it in movies, but until you see it up close, you're not able to really perceive the amount of work that goes into them."

To celebrate the popular traveling exhibit's run at Philbrook, the Tulsa museum is planning Samurai Week July 16-20, with special activities, performances, art-making opportunities, workshops, martial arts demonstrations, extended hours and more.

July 16-20: Samurai Storytime for families with children 10 and younger at 10 a.m.
July 16-20: Koi fish feeding at 10:30 a.m.
July 16-20: Paint at the Pool: Koi-inspired watercolor painting from 10:30 a.m. to 1 p.m.
July 16-20: “Samurai Studio," where visitors can make their own suminagashi water marbled print, from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m.
July 16-20: Ask a Curator in the 'Samurai' exhibit from 1 to 2 p.m.
July 17-19: Museum open extended hours from 9 a.m. to 9 p.m.
July 17-19: Sushi + Samurai: Sushi from Chimera Café, live music on the patio and an outdoor cash bar with beer, wine, cocktails and non-alcoholic beverages from 5 to 9 p.m.
July 17: Music on the Patio featuring Tucker Wilkie from 5:30 to 8:30 p.m.
July 18: Green Country Bonsai Society display from 5 to 8 p.m.
July 18: Music on the Patio featuring David Horne from 5:30 to 8:30 p.m.
July 18: Movie screening of 2023's "Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Mutant Mayhem," with pizza from Andolini's, at 6 p.m.
July 19: Live performances from Kanpai Taiko drumming group at 1 p.m. and 2 p.m.
July 19: Live kendo demonstrations with Tulsa Kendo Dojo at 3 p.m.
July 19: Music on the Patio featuring Mike Lenzini from 5:30 to 8:30 p.m.
July 20: Tea Ceremony with Yumie Farringer at 1 p.m.
July 20: Live iaido demonstration with Tulsa Aikido Club at 2 p.m.