Author: nakano

Taito City Asakura Museum of Sculpture

A solo exhibition commemorating the 100th anniversary of the birth of Kyoko Asakura (1925-2016), a representative contemporary figurative sculptor, “100 Years of Kyoko Asakura” was held at the Ueno Royal Museum Gallery from Sunday, May 11, 2025 to Wednesday, May 21, 2025. Admission is free.

Kyoko Asakura is the second daughter of sculptor Fumio Asakura, who led the Japanese sculpture world from the Meiji period through to the Showa period and is known for his outstanding naturalistic realistic expression.

She studied sculpture at the Asakura School of Sculpture, which was run by her father, and was first selected for the 5th Shinbunten Exhibition in 1942. She received several special selections at the Nitten Exhibition, and in 1952, at the young age of 26, she became the youngest and first female judge, but left the Nitten Exhibition as if to break away from the male-dominated society and various ties. From that point on, she produced many sophisticated, urbane female figures from a freer position, and established her own style. She remained active at the forefront of her field until her later years, passing away in 2016 at the age of 90.

This exhibition will introduce 12 selected pieces from the works donated to Taito Ward by her family after her death, mainly bronze works created after 1970. It was planned to promote the artist’s appeal once again on the occasion of the 100th anniversary of her birth. The Ueno Royal Museum Gallery is also the venue where Asakura Kyoko held her last solo exhibition before her death.

According to Yasuko Tobari, a senior researcher at the Asakura Museum of Sculpture (※), who guided us through this exhibition, Kyoko Asakura was extremely particular about the models she used for her work, and sometimes it took her several years to select one. Most of the people who suited her glasses were young foreign or mixed-race women, with small faces, long limbs, and stylish figures.

(*) This is the studio and residence that Fumio Asakura had in Yanaka, Taito Ward, where Kyoko Asakura learned the basics of sculpture from her father. It is now open to the public as a museum.

The “Tski” series, which draws the viewer in with its bold features, features three pieces on display. One full-body figure is in a strange pose, as if dancing, fully expressing the beauty of the statue’s well-honed proportions. The sculptor’s solid skill can be seen in the symmetrical expression of the muscles, with the taut lower body and relaxed arms, seen in the unique dynamic stance, and the sense of balance that allows the statue to stand on its tiptoes.

The elegant “Hat,” featuring a large hat pulled down over the artist’s eyes, is one of Kyoko Asakura’s favorite pieces. Her facial expression cannot be seen from the front, but the beautiful expression of her hands spread open around her chest adds a charming touch to the piece, and the impression it gives changes depending on the height and angle of your gaze.

According to Tobari, it was from this production onwards that this type of hand expression became an accent in Asakura Kyoko’s works.

“The sculptor Tadayoshi Sato has written, ‘It’s true that hands are quite attention-seeking, and if you let your guard down for even a moment, they will start chattering away and turn into vulgar sculptures.’ However, in Kyoko’s works, which effectively use the expression of hands as seen in Hat, it feels as though she is creating a time and space that seems to be in dialogue with us as we confront the work.”

One piece that particularly caught the eye at the venue was “F” (later renamed “Rest” ), a rare male figure among Asakura Kyoko’s works, modeled on singer Akira Fuse. The piece depicts a busy young singer taking a break on a terrace during his free time, and won the 7th Nagano City Outdoor Sculpture Award in 1979. The fact that part of the foot protrudes from the black base is the sculptor’s intention to show an image of a relaxed mind.

As an aside, Kyoko Asakura’s works are scattered throughout public spaces all over Japan, and this one is also installed in Shiroyama Park in Nagano City, Nagano Prefecture. In this idyllic location, where the greenery spreads out, the title “Rest” is perfectly suited to the piece, the figure stretches its toes out from the stone pedestal onto the ground, relaxing and stretching out as if on a picnic, which is likely to give the viewer a sense of mental space.

At the very back of the venue, “Lisa,” which was also chosen as the main visual for this exhibition, was on display. It is a sculpture that sublimates a woman’s natural standing posture, and Tobari says that its distinctive feature is that it is “flawless” from any angle, 360 degrees.

“In many cases, a work of art has a front, or when you stand facing the work, it is the side that the sculptor wants to show. In Kyoko’s case, the pose is fixed no matter what angle you look at the work from. Kyoko’s works do not have the weaknesses that humans have. This work makes you realize this. I think this work presents one answer to what sculpture means to Kyoko.”

Tobari also asked people to pay attention to the feet of the piece.

Apparently, it takes a great deal of skill to make a sculpture stand on two legs. You often see sculptures where the ground beneath the feet is one with the work. This is called “jiama” and acts as a weight to adjust the center of gravity of the work.

“One sculptor said that it’s easier to adjust the balance if you leave some ‘room’, but this piece doesn’t have that. What’s amazing about Kyoko-sensei is that she manages to achieve such difficult feats with such ease. This piece was made by creating a plaster mold from a clay prototype, then pouring in bronze to finish it. To make it stand like a human being, and to achieve the shape and balance out of clay, it is essential to study the human body. When you imagine that process, you can see that Kyoko’s stylish works are made possible by keen observation and outstanding technical skill.”

Looking at the work as a whole, it is surprising that although it has been a while since it was created, the female figures do not feel dated at all. One of the reasons why it has achieved timelessness as a work of art is the fashion, which is simple and makes the most of the beauty of the body. With her fingers in her jeans pockets and a dignified expression, she is not trying to be too cool. The natural and free female figure seems to overlap with the figure of Kyoko Asakura, who struggled away from her father’s protection in the still male-dominated art world.

Finally, Tobari offered the following opinion on the appeal of Asakura Kyoko’s work:

“Fumio Asakura’s works tend to be installed at a high position, so many of them are viewed by looking up. Kyoko’s works, in contrast, are often installed at the same height as the viewer. The space and the work become one, creating a sense of ease and closeness, as if we are blending into the work. I think this is a big attraction, and that is why his works are still installed in outdoor public spaces and are familiar to people.”

Kyoko Asakura’s sculptures are like a kind of refreshing agent, bringing a breath of fresh air to the cityscape. Even if you missed this exhibition, we encourage you to seek out Kyoko Asakura’s works, many of which are scattered around Tokyo, and experience their lively atmosphere and universal beauty.

The Asakura Museum of Sculpture is set to hold a special exhibition entitled “ASAKURA Kyoko: 100 Years Since Birth” from Saturday, September 13th to Sunday, December 14th, 2025. This will be the first time that the museum will exhibit a sculptural space created by father and daughter Asakura Fumio and Kyoko. For more details, please see the Asakura Museum of Sculpture’s official website .

[Reference] Articles about past exhibitions are available.
Special exhibition commemorating 60 years since the death of Asakura Fumio: “Wonderful Cat Life: Asakura Fumio and Cats, and Sometimes Dogs”
(Duration: September 14, 2024 (Saturday) to December 24, 2024 (Tuesday))

Overview of the “100th Anniversary of the Birth of Kyoko Asakura Exhibition”

Asakura Museum of Sculpture (7-18-10 Yanaka, Taito-ku)

*The content of this article is from the time of the interview.

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Tokyo National Museum

Tsutaya Juzaburo (1750-97), also known as “Tsutajyu,” was a prominent publisher in the Edo period. A special exhibition titled “Tsutaya Juzaburo: A Turbulent Figure in the Content Business” is currently being held at the Tokyo National Museum in Ueno, Tokyo, in conjunction with the 2025 taiga drama “Berabou – Tsutajyu Eika no Yumebanashi,” which will feature Tsutajyu as the main character. The exhibition will run until Sunday, June 15, 2025.

*Some of the works on display will be changed during the exhibition.
First half of the exhibition: April 22 (Tue) – May 18 (Sun)
Late exhibition: May 20th (Tuesday) – June 15th (Sunday)

Tsutaya Juzaburo, the Edo media mogul who discovered Utamaro and Sharaku

Tsutae was born in Yoshiwara, a brothel officially recognized by the shogunate, in 1750. He started out as a rental bookstore, and as a publisher he expanded his network to include samurai, wealthy townspeople, popular actors, comic book writers, and artists, developing a media mix and bringing about various innovations in the publishing industry of Edo.

While keeping up with the times, he produced many best-selling works, including kibyoshi, sharebon, kyokabon, and ukiyo-e, and is also known for producing ukiyo-e artists Kitagawa Utamaro and Toshusai Sharaku, who are now considered world-renowned Japanese artists.

Through a total of approximately 250 works from the first and second half of the exhibition, this exhibition follows the activities of Tsutae, a man of great influence at the time, and allows visitors to experience the values and artistry he created.

Chapter 1: “The Innovation of Yoshiwara Hosomi, Sharebon, and Yellow Cover Books”

The exhibition is divided into three chapters plus an appendix. At the entrance to Chapter 1, visitors are greeted by Yoshiwara Daimon, which was the only entrance to the Yoshiwara red-light district.

This is the actual set used in the filming of the historical drama “Berabou,” and it is said that ukiyo-e prints by Utagawa Toyoharu, Utagawa Kunisada, Utagawa Hiroshige, and others were referenced in the production. Beyond the gate is a space that imitates Yoshiwara’s main street, “Nakano-cho,” where rows of cherry blossoms and night lights create a spring atmosphere.

Chapter 1 displays Yoshiwara guidebook “Yoshiwara Saimin,” which was the starting point of Tsutae’s career as a publisher.

Originally published by a different publisher, Yoshiwara Saimin had many problems that had caused it to lose credibility, including its inability to keep up with the rapid changes in Yoshiwara information.
In comparison, the first reprint of Tsuta’s Yoshiwara Saimin, “Rigid Flowers,” not only updated the information to the latest by utilizing the information network of people who had grown up in Yoshiwara, but also improved the layout by placing the brothels lined up on both sides of the street facing each other at the top and bottom of the paper, allowing people to walk around the town while holding it in their hands. In addition, costs were reduced by consolidating information from two pages onto one page, attracting many customers to Yoshiwara, which was in decline.

Tsutaju continued to pursue what people enjoyed throughout its publishing activities, and it is clear that it was already thoroughly consumer-oriented at this point.

The exhibition allows visitors to compare the changes between the old and new versions of “Yoshiwara Saimin,” and also highlights the various attempts made to increase the publication’s commercial value, such as having the preface written by Sankyoden, one of the most popular comic writers of the time.

Tsutajyo’s first independently produced publication was Hitome Senbon (1774), a chronicle of courtesans’ reputations in which courtesans were likened to flower arranging. Tsutajyo also planned the nishiki-e book Seirou Bijin Gosizikagami (1776), which depicts courtesans from each brothel busily practicing the koto, painting, calligraphy, flower arranging, and other arts and parlor entertainment throughout the year, and was jointly drawn by the popular artists Kitao Shigemasa and Katsukawa Shunsho.

Both of these works are believed to have been funded by the courtesans depicted, their patrons, and brothel owners, and these “silver-earning” works, which were produced without putting a strain on Tsutae’s own pockets, became one of Tsutae’s main business models.

Tsutae demonstrated his excellent skills as a publisher, and built up financial strength through reliable, standard products such as the exclusive publication of the original version of the Joruri puppet theatre called Tomimotobushi, which was popular in Edo, and the production of a large number of Oraimono, elementary textbooks used at temple schools and other institutions.

At the same time, the company employed popular writers and illustrators and began publishing popular fiction in the form of kibyōshi and sharebon. Examples of this include “Mitoku Ichinoseidō Kisanji’s ‘Midori Ichitaimu’ (1781), which made Tsutajyū’s name known in the world of gisaku, and ” Hakoiri Musume Omenya Ningyo’ (1791), a parody by Sankyōden that depicts the sequel to “Urashima Tarō” and was produced during the publishing restrictions imposed by the Kansei Reforms.

Chapter 2: The Rise of Kyoka – Tsuta Tomaru and His Relationships with Cultural Figures

Chapter 2 focuses on Tsutae’s relationship with kyoka (a type of short poem that parodies waka poetry and incorporates satire and irony into social conditions), which was all the rage in Edo, particularly during the Tenmei period (1781-89).

The culture of composing kyoka poems celebrating Edo began as a pastime for the educated samurai class. With the Kansei Reforms, the culture spread to people of all walks of life, including townspeople, actors, and artists, and Tsutaju also entered the scene as a kyoka poet under the name Tsuta Tomaru. While he was active in the literary arts, he also found a way to thrive as a publisher, compiling kyoka poems that had been read and discarded into publications. While interacting with leading cultural figures of the time such as Ota Nanpo, Karagoromo Kitsushu, and Shura Sugae, he led the boom from Yoshiwara, the source of trends.

Furthermore, Tsutaju pioneered a new genre, kyoka ehon, which added pictures to the previously text-only world of kyoka books, and published them exclusively. Among the kyoka ehon, the silver-finished works, which were funded by wealthy kyoka poets who wanted to make a name for themselves, were gorgeous, with multi-color printing and techniques such as mica printing and air printing, making them worthy of being called works of art.

The highlight of this chapter is the kyoka picture book illustrated by Kitagawa Utamaro, whose talent was discovered by Tsutae and who was hired almost exclusively by Tsutae. Utamaro’s kyoka picture book trilogy, “Gahon Mushi Sen” (1788), “Shiohi no Tsuto” (1789), and “Hundred and Thousand Birds Kyoka-awase” (1790), have themes of insects, shellfish, and birds, respectively, and you can feel the high precision of Utamaro’s sketches and keen observational eye.

Also on display here is the pillow picture (shunga) book “Utamakura” (1788), which is said to have been created by Utamaro during his lifetime. According to Masato Matsushima (Tokyo National Museum’s head of curatorial planning), who is in charge of planning this exhibition, this is the first time that a pillow picture has been exhibited in the museum’s history of over 150 years since its founding.

Among the 12 wide-format nishiki-e prints depicting the intricate interactions between men and women at a teahouse, including scenes of pandemonium and negotiation, the painting “The Second Floor of the Teahouse” is considered particularly beautiful. (The image is a partial view.)
It is a depiction of a secret love, and although the woman is seen from behind and her expression cannot be seen, her affection for the man is apparent from the way she strokes his cheek, while the man’s right eye, peeking out from under the woman’s topknot, appears calm and sober; the intertwined intentions of the man and woman and the realism of that moment are nothing short of stunning.

Regarding this painting, Matsushima commented, “It is not clear what Utamaro was thinking when he painted this, but depending on the viewer, they can imagine different emotions between the two men. This shows how multi-layered and deep the painting is.”

Chapter 3: “Discovering Ukiyo-e Artists: Utamaro, Sharaku, and Eishosai Choki”

The third chapter follows Tsutaju’s activities in publishing, from the latter half of his career, when he branched out into ukiyo-e printmaking during the Kansei period (1789-1801). Including works published by other publishers such as Nishimuraya Yohachi and Wakasaya Yoichi, the exhibition brings together masterpieces representing the ukiyo-e world of the late 18th century, known as the Golden Age of ukiyo-e.

Tsutaju discovered famous artists such as Kitagawa Utamaro, Toshusai Sharaku, and Eishosai Choki, and planned and published ukiyo-e that made the most of their appeal. At the time, various publishers were introducing new approaches to ukiyo-e, but what characterizes Tsutaju’s works is that they incorporated the “large neck” composition, which boldly closes up the face of a person, which was used in actor paintings, into the bijin-ga (portraits of beautiful women), which generally featured full-body portraits.

Utamaro, a leading figure in the painting of beautiful women, teamed up with Tsutaju, and his “large-head painting” technique, in which he paid close attention to the facial expressions and gestures of the subjects, and his expressions that conveyed even their emotions, became popular. In addition, while the painting of beautiful women had previously focused on courtesans, he also began to produce works with ordinary women as the subject.

For example, “Three Famous Beauties” (1793) depicts three popular poster girls from the Kansei period: Okita, Takashima Ohisa, and Tomimoto Toyohina of Naniwaya. At first glance, they all appear to have the same face, but if you look closely, you’ll see that they are caricatures that capture subtle individuality in the eyebrows, corners of the eyes, noses, and contours.

Since portraits of beautiful women generally depicted the ideal face and body shape of each era, this attempt to bring realism into a world of fantasy was, in a sense, extremely groundbreaking.

At the end of the third chapter, Sharaku Toshusai is featured prominently. Sharaku is one of Japan’s leading ukiyo-e artists, but in fact, his career lasted only about 10 months. He is a mysterious figure who appeared in Edo like a comet and disappeared without a trace, leaving behind over 140 works.

He was a star discovered by Tsutajyo in his attempt to monopolise actor prints, and all of his famous works were published by Tsutajyo. To achieve success with his large-headed actor prints following on from Utamaro’s portraits of beautiful women, Tsutajyo made a spectacular debut with a single publication of 28 gorgeous large-format nishikie prints printed on black mica, covering the entire repertoire of theatrical performances.

One of these pieces is Edobei of Otani Oniji III (1794), which everyone has probably seen at least once. It depicts a scene from Koi Nyobo Somebun Tezuna, in which Edobei is about to attack Yakko Ippei to steal his money, and the distinctive pose of his hands captures the moment he is about to take off his jacket. Combined with the tragic expression of the paired piece, Yakko Ippei of Ichikawa Otokozo I (1794), it creates an extremely tense atmosphere that matches the dark background of the black mica print.

Sharaku’s style of painting is generally said to be deformed, but in fact it can be said to be characterized by an advanced level of realism, as he mercilessly exposes facial features, not only depicting wrinkles and nasolabial folds that the actors themselves would want to hide, but also the rugged bone structure of even his female characters.

At the time, other artists portrayed actors in a glamorized manner. It is easy to imagine that Tsutae had foreseen that this kind of realistic depiction would become a new trend, but many Kabuki fans dream of the roles their favorite actors will play. Sharaku’s paintings, which were too realistic, were unpopular not only with fans but also with the actors themselves, and they never became popular.

Regardless of the outcome, these nishiki-e prints, which reflect the inner thoughts of people living today, represent a milestone in the expression of people by the publisher Tsutaju, and in ukiyo-e.

Appendix: “The City of Edo during the Tenmei and Kansei Periods”

Edo in the second half of the 18th century, when Tsutaju established his bookstore and publishing company, Koshodo, was a time of economic and cultural growth, developing into a fascinating city worthy of being called Great Edo.

In the appendix, the art team behind the historical drama “Berabou” recreated the streets of Nihonbashi at the time. In addition to CG images showing the four seasons in Nihonbashi, the exhibition also features props and setting materials used in the drama, explaining how Edo culture was incorporated into the story.

Please note that you may only photograph the badge, but you may not actually enter the building.

This exhibition was designed to evoke the atmosphere of Edo as much as possible. Publications by Tsutaju appear every week in the drama, and many of the originals are on display at the venue, so those who are avid viewers of the drama may find many new discoveries.

Summary of the special exhibition “Tsutaya Juzaburo: A Driving Force in the Content Business”

*The contents of this article are current as of the time of coverage. Please check the official exhibition website for the latest information.

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Taito City Museum

The Shitamachi Museum was opened in 1980 to convey the culture and traditions of the good old Tokyo downtown area to future generations, and has entertained many visitors, including foreign visitors to Japan. It was closed in the spring of 2023 for major renovations due to the aging of the facility, but has now reopened under the new name Shitamachi Museum .

*For information on the previous state of the Shitamachi Museum, click here⇒
https://www.culture.city.taito.lg.jp/ja/reports/29750

With this large-scale renovation, the exhibition area, which was previously only on the first and second floors, has been expanded to the third floor. New nursing rooms and barrier-free toilets have also been installed, making the facility enjoyable for even more people.

The exhibition room on the first floor recreates the streets of downtown Tokyo in the 1950s. The model is a corner of a lantern shop that operated on Kanasugi Street in Sakamoto (now Negishi 3-chome) , Taito Ward, which escaped damage from the Great Kanto Earthquake and the Tokyo Air Raids and where many old streets and buildings remained until recently. You can actually enter the life-size tenement house and experience the lifestyle and atmosphere of those times.

The recreated exhibit before the renovation was modeled after the Taisho era, but according to museum researcher Kondo Takeshi, they decided to completely revamp the content to mark the first major renovation in over 40 years since the museum opened.

“The reason we decided to set the exhibition in the 1950s, 60 to 70 years ago, was because we wanted to encourage people who were there at the time to come and see the exhibit with their families and have conversations like, ‘Oh, so this tool was used like this,'” says Kondo.

In addition, Kanasugi-dori Street had many remaining research materials such as drawings, and Mr. Igarashi, the owner of the Igarashi Lantern Shop, which is the core of the exhibition, was still alive and able to provide various forms of cooperation, which was a deciding factor for the model.
(Although the building has been rebuilt, the Igarashi Lantern Shop is still in business.)

In the 1950s and 60s, the quality of life in the downtown area was improving due to the redevelopment of districts and streets after the Great Kanto Earthquake, and the period of high economic growth during the postwar reconstruction. On the large screen installed in the exhibition area, a retro-style animation video is being shown that depicts Kanasugi-dori Street during that period.

In the video, a main street is lined with “Omote-nagaya” (front row houses) housing shops, restaurants, beauty salons and more, and while trams and cars run along the road, there are also vegetable carts and ramen stalls. The video conveys that old-fashioned lifestyles continue to thrive amid the waves of a new era, and deliberately no background music is used, instead emphasizing environmental sounds such as the sound of trams running and birds chirping to create a sense of realism.

Even as infrastructure such as electricity and gas was developed, lanterns remained an essential item in downtown areas, where many festivals were held. The Igarashi Lantern Shop, which has been in business since the end of the Edo period, has a display that recreates the workshop where lanterns were assembled and inscribed. On display are round festival lanterns, anvils and hammers for fixing the top and bottom of the lanterns, and paintbrushes for inscribing and coloring.

These items, such as household items and furniture, were basically donated by the ward’s residents, so they show signs of wear and tear. You can touch them, and get a feel for their texture and weight, which is one of the museum’s attractions. (Please handle them with care when touching them.)

Behind the workshop is the living space and kitchen, and if you exit the kitchen through a back door into the alley, you will find a “back alley” across the street. In addition to the craftsmen and office workers who commuted from home to their workplace, the back alley was home to peddlers such as street kamishibai storytellers, and the exhibition recreates the residence of a kamishibai storyteller.

Glass jars and wooden boxes for storing cheap sweets are placed on the step up to the entrance. Kamishibai performers made a living by selling cheap sweets to the children who came to watch the kamishibai shows, but on rainy days when the show couldn’t be performed, children would sometimes come to the house looking for cheap sweets.

If you look closely at the exhibits, you’ll notice that, like the everyday scenes depicted in the animation, old and new things coexist together, such as “while there’s a gas stove in the kitchen, there’s also a charcoal grill in use.” Kondo says he was particularly particular about recreating the transitional period. When elementary school students visit on social studies field trips, he says he sometimes has them learn in a game-like way, asking them, “What did we use to cook before the gas stove was invented? Let’s find something that has the same function!”

The second floor area is a permanent exhibition room where you can learn about the history and culture of the downtown area, centered around Taito Ward, from the Meiji period through to the 1950s.

In the introductory exhibit just inside the building, two types of videos are shown on the screen: a video tracing the history of Taito Ward in the style of a sugoroku game, and a video introducing the everyday items that supported the lives of our ancestors. In addition, on the stage in front of the screen, actual items of the everyday items featured in the video are arranged by category: “clothing,” “food,” “housing,” “commerce (merchants),” and “occupations (craftsmen).”

“Initially, the idea for the introductory exhibit was to select and exhibit just one of the collection materials that symbolizes Shitamachi Museum. However, even as a curator, it is difficult to clearly define the concept of ‘shitamachi’, and it is impossible to express it with just one material. So, as one way of showing it, we placed a chabudai (a traditional dining table), which was the center of family gatherings, in the center, and displayed the items in an arrangement that spread out around it. We decided that the atmosphere that is created when the items are lined up is what we call ‘shitamachi.'” (Kondo)

The exhibition features a wide range of items, from tools that children today may already know, such as dining tables and beckoning cats, to items that have completely disappeared in the Reiwa era, such as glass fly traps and money boxes used by merchants to deposit sales proceeds. It’s interesting to look at these unknown tools and imagine how they could be used.

Continuing on, the exhibits are divided into sections: “1. Culture and life in the downtown area since the Edo period,” “2. The Great Kanto Earthquake and reconstruction,” “3. Life during wartime,” “4. Starting over from the ruins,” “5. Towards rapid economic growth,” and “6. Life connected to our Taito ward.” They look back on how the townscape, lifestyles, and more have changed due to the major changes of each era.

The “automatic telephone” (later a public telephone) that previously greeted visitors at the entrance to the facility also appeared in the area as a symbol of the transition of the downtown area. The first automatic telephones in Japan were installed in 1900, at Ueno and Shinbashi stations.

It’s easy to miss, but there are various documents hidden in the drawers, so be sure to check them out. For example, Taito Ward was the first area in Japan to have a subway (the current Ginza Line) in 1927, and the “Ueno-Asakusa Section Construction Overview” is a booklet that summarizes the construction of the subway at that time. The current Ginza Line runs from Asakusa to Ueno, turns west at Shinbashi, and goes to Shibuya, but the document states that the original route was planned to go from Shinbashi to Onarimon and then to Shinagawa, which was very interesting.

The newly opened third floor area houses a special exhibition room and a downtown information corner.

The special exhibition room changes exhibits three times a year, roughly every four months, and the first special exhibition has the theme of “What kind of town is a downtown?” It explores what a downtown is, from the establishment of Tokyo’s downtown (Taito Ward was not included in the downtown area when it was first established), to the history of its expansion, and the occupations and temperaments of the people who lived there.

The adjacent Shitamachi Information Corner has a touch-screen terminal called “Shitamachi Material Search” that allows visitors to find out more about the materials stored in the museum.

If you are interested in or don’t understand anything in the reproduction exhibits on the first floor or the introductory exhibits on the second floor, you can rest assured that you will come here. You can also view data on materials that are not on display, which may be helpful for your studies or research.
(It depends on how busy it is, but if you have any questions about the materials, the curators will be happy to explain them to you.)

You can also try out old toys and everyday items such as kendama, menko, Matsukaze tops, abacus, and scales, and the benches can be used as a rest area. From the large windows, you can get a full view of Shinobazu Pond, making it a great spot to enjoy the seasonal changes of cherry blossoms, lotus flowers, and autumn leaves.

The Shitamachi Museum is a place where people of all ages, from children to the elderly, can make various discoveries and enjoy themselves. It has undergone a major transformation and has made a new start, but Kondo says that one thing it has inherited from the days of the Shitamachi Museum is the fact that visitors can hear real stories of their experiences from nowhere .

“The exhibits act as a catalyst for visitors to get excited as they recall their memories of the time, saying, ‘Oh, that happened!’ Or grandparents pass on knowledge gained from their own experiences to their grandchildren, and other visitors who hear this nod in agreement… We see scenes like this every day. You naturally hear valuable information that is not found in documents and can only be obtained from people who have actually experienced it. I think that is the greatest attraction of the main building,” says Kondo.

It’s a perfect location for a quick visit after a stroll around Shinobazu Pond, so why not stop by? Just like before the renovation, events such as street picture-story shows and traditional craft demonstrations will also be held, so please check the official website for details such as the schedule.

Overview of the Shitamachi Museum

*The contents of this article are current as of the time of coverage. Please check the official website for the latest information.

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National Museum of Western Art

The exhibition “From Renaissance to Impressionism: San Diego Museum of Art vs. National Museum of Western Art” (commonly known as the “Where to See?” exhibition) has opened at the National Museum of Western Art in Ueno, Tokyo. The exhibition will run from March 11 to June 8, 2025.
I attended the press preview that was held earlier, so I’d like to share some photos of the venue.

The two museums’ collections interact to explore their appeal from various angles

The exhibition combines a total of 88 pieces from the collections of the San Diego Museum of Art and the National Museum of Western Art in the United States, tracing the history of Western art spanning 600 years from the Renaissance to the end of the 19th century, and offering tips on how to enjoy viewing the works .

The San Diego Museum of Art, one of the earliest art museums to build a comprehensive collection of Western classical paintings in the American West, has focused its collection on Spanish art due to the cultural and historical ties to San Diego, an area founded by Spanish settlement.

Therefore, the exhibition includes many masterpieces of Spanish art, such as “Still Life with Quince, Cabbage, Melon, and Cucumber” by Juan Sánchez Cotán, the father of Bodegón (Spanish still life painting) , as well as works by El Greco, Zurbarán, Sorolla, etc. All 49 pieces brought to Japan from the San Diego Museum of Art will be shown in Japan for the first time .

On the other hand, the National Museum of Western Art has the only systematic collection of Western paintings in East Asia. Regarding the background of the exhibition, curator Yusuke Kawase (Chief Researcher at the National Museum of Western Art) said the following:

“In an art exhibition consisting only of works borrowed from one museum, it is often difficult to understand the context, such as the artist’s personality or the artist’s position in the artist’s artistic career, even if you can appreciate each piece. The same can be said for the permanent exhibition at the National Museum of Western Art. Therefore, this time, we decided to combine the collections of both museums, arrange works by the same artist or subject in groups, and dig deeper . By doing so, we tried to convey the interesting world of Western art, which is often avoided due to the difficulty of the subject and the age of the era, and where to start looking. This exhibition was created with the intention of conveying the interesting world of Western art in an easy-to-understand manner.

As Kawase mentioned, the exhibition is divided into 36 small themes. For example, in the first chapter, which explores the development of Renaissance painting in Italy and the Netherlands (present-day Belgium and the Netherlands) from Giotto to Bosch (workshop), works by Giorgione (1477/78-1510) and Jacopo Tintoretto (1518-1594) are displayed side by side as “Venetian Renaissance Portraits.”

Giorgione died in his early 30s, leaving very few documents and much about him still shrouded in mystery, but he is considered the founder of the High Renaissance style in Venetian painting. His Portrait of a Man (1506), housed at the San Diego Museum of Art, is a small piece but one of the masterpieces of Renaissance portraiture. With its precise depiction of physical features and soft shading, he achieved revolutionary realism.

On the other hand, Tintoretto is considered one of the three great masters of 16th century Venetian painting after Giorgione’s death, alongside Titian and Veronese. By displaying his “Portrait of an Old Man” (c.1550) from the San Diego Museum of Art and “Portrait of a Man Disguised as David” (c.1555-1560) from the National Museum of Western Art alongside Giorgione’s works, the exhibition shows, with accompanying explanatory text, how Tintoretto developed the technique used by Giorgione to express volume through color gradations.

A masterpiece by Spain’s most important still-life painter, who influenced Goya and Picasso, is coming to Japan

Chapter 2, which introduces the characteristics of 17th century Baroque art by region, features the highlight of the exhibition , Still Life with Quince, Cabbage, Melon and Cucumber (c.1602) by Juan Sánchez Cotán (1560-1627).

From the end of the 16th century to the beginning of the 17th century, still-life paintings began to be painted independently all over Europe, and in Spain, the “bodegón” style of still-life painting, which focuses on motifs related to food and the dining table, developed in particular. The painter Sánchez Cotán, who was active in Toledo around 1600, devised a unique compositional technique in which a small number of common vegetables and fruits are arranged on a stone frame, as seen in this work, and lit with spotlight-like light to accentuate the contrast between light and dark. This established the typical form of Spanish still-life painting that would continue to be used for a long time.

Commenting on the appeal of this work, curator Michael Brown (Curator of European Art at the San Diego Museum of Art), said , “At first glance it appears to be a simple composition, but the single blank space of darkness in the center exudes infinite elements and a mysterious, unreachable atmosphere.”

Kawase described this work as “the most balanced of the six surviving still lifes by Sánchez Cotán, and a masterpiece that clearly conveys the solemnity and serenity that are unique to Sánchez Cotán,” and said, “The fact that this work is coming to Japan is a major event in itself .”

For comparison, there is the gorgeous and decorative Still Life with Basket of Fruit and Game Birds (c.1621) by Juan van der Ament (1596-1631), who represented the next generation after Sánchez Cotán, and the Lamb of God (c.1635-40), which evokes quiet meditation and prayer, by Francisco de Zurbarán (1598-1664), also known as the “monk painter” for his many portraits of saints. In both compositions and devices, it is clear that they have inherited the tradition from Sánchez Cotán.

As for Zurbarán, the exhibition also presents four of his works, including his specialty, the large, single-figure Saint Dominic (1626-27), and the masterpiece of his mature period , the Virgin and Child with Saint John (1658), which is full of compassion. It succinctly shows the development of his artistic career, from a profound, sculptural realism to sweet, idealized expressions, as if wrapped in a veil of light. There is always an elegance and serenity present, and one can sense the artist’s consistent aesthetic sense.

Real Venice and Imaginary Rome: Cityscape Paintings Developing in Different Directions in Italy

Chapter 3 focuses on the development of Italian and French paintings, which led 18th century art, and examines the characteristics of each genre of landscape, portrait, and genre painting. Here, a comparative display of cityscape paintings in Venice and Rome is eye-catching.

In the 18th century, the Grand Tour was popular in England and countries north of the Alps, where the children of the upper classes traveled to various European cities, including Italy, the source of European civilization, to acquire cultural knowledge. One of the souvenirs they sought when returning home was cityscape paintings, known as vedota, which flourished in Venice and Rome, the two major centers of the Grand Tour.

As for cityscape paintings of Venice, the exhibition introduces works by Bernardo Bellotto (1721-1780) and Francesco Guardi (1712-1781), who are considered to be the three great masters of Venetian painting alongside Canaletto. Both of them depict the iconic scenery of the magnificent water city in a manner that appears largely realistic. In contrast, the exhibition on Rome, although also in Italy, moves away from recreating specific locations and presents a nostalgic world that blends reality and fantasy.

For example, in a pair of landscape paintings by Hubert Robert (1733-1808), who became famous as “Robert of the Ruins,” Robert brings together famous ancient works that are actually in different locations, such as the Equestrian Statue of Marcus Aurelius in the Piazza del Campidoglio and Trajan’s Column, and also includes a huge temple that is probably a product of the imagination. Since the people in the painting are dressed in 18th-century clothing, the works are thought to strongly reflect the perspective of people at the time, who wanted to enjoy ancient buildings as ruins.

These are known as “capriccio” (fantastic paintings) among cityscape paintings. The streets of Rome, with its many crumbling and weathered ruins and historical buildings, seem to have been an important source of inspiration for painters, stimulating the imagination of travelers with their free-spirited ideas. Venice goes for realism, Rome for fantasy. It is clear how much influence regional characteristics have had on the rise of painting genres.

Understanding the transition from Loroco to Neoclassicism through two female painters: Capet and Benoist

In Chapter 3, there is a comparative exhibition of portraits by two female painters, Marie-Gabrielle Capet (1761-1818) and Marie-Guillemine Benoît (1768-1826), which clearly shows the change in aesthetic values in 18th century France, from the glamorous and aristocratic Rococo to Neoclassicism, which emphasizes order and reason.

Female artists began to emerge in France from the second half of the 18th century, and both Capet and Benoît were representative painters whose names were displayed at the Salon (official exhibition) of 1791, the first time women were allowed to exhibit after the French Revolution.

In Capet’s Self-Portrait (c.1783), the gorgeous blue dress and ribbons and curls in the hair are a clear example of the Rococo style, and the young artist’s expression as he gazes out at us is so bright and radiant that it is hard not to stare. You can sense his confidence, as if he is proud of his own skills. In contrast, Benoit’s Portrait of a Woman (c.1799) clearly shows a neoclassical tendency to seek models in the art of classical antiquity, with its ancient-style white chemise dress and sculptural, stable depiction of the body.

Not only is the quality of the works themselves high, but like the cityscape paintings mentioned above, it is easy to see where to look in order to enjoy the exhibit, making this a must-see exhibition, especially for beginners.

How does the way the fence is painted change the impression of the painting?

Chapter 4, which focuses on the diverse ways in which people were depicted in the 19th century, featured a comparative exhibition of “Hedge Surfaces” by Impressionist painters, which was somewhat surprising.

The exhibition focuses on the motif of fences, which are common in rural areas, depicted in the works of Camille Pissarro (1830-1903), the oldest Impressionist who left Paris to study the lives of farmers around Pontoise, and Theodore Robinson (1852-1896), an American painter who learned his artistic techniques in Sylveny, where Monet lived. The exhibition explains how fences are linked to the psychology of the characters and how they are effectively depicted as a device for spatial composition.

As the exhibition suggests ways to enjoy the artworks from such a somewhat niche perspective, even intermediate and advanced fans who wish to delve deeper into Western art can expect to make some fresh discoveries.

Enjoy casually, without any limitations on your thinking — Dean Fujioka’s way of appreciating films

Dean Fujioka, the exhibition’s audio guide navigator, also appeared at the press preview.

Looking back on the recording of the audio guide, Fujioka said, “If it becomes too pushy, like the ‘Koko Miru Exhibition,’ the intention changes. During meetings, I was told about the key points that would serve as criteria for judgment, such as the background of different eras, the social atmosphere, religious views, how to choose the motifs to paint, the touch, and the painting method, and I interpreted them in my own way, hoping to convey them as a form of guidance and navigation.”

He also suggested his own way of viewing films, saying, “I think that when you create your own story, it gives rise to your own perspective, and your own way of enjoying it on each day and in each moment. (When asked by the moderator if this means you first face the work and then speak to your own inner sensibilities) To put it coolly, yes. It’s like an endless loop of jokes and responses in your mind.”

“There are a variety of religious motifs and contexts, and some works have quite a lot of potential poke fun at. I try to enjoy those in a casual way, without any restrictions,” he continued. Looking at Zurbaran’s Saint Dominic, he described the artist’s appeal from his unique perspective, saying, “He’s looking up to the sky, with his hands in a cute heart-shaped pose,” which drew laughter from the audience.

During the exhibition, a limited event called “Dokomiru de Yokai” will be held for four days (night opening days). If you dress up in your own way and declare that you’ve been invited to the Yokai, you’ll receive an original postcard, and the venue will have photo spots and “Yokai photo items” such as masks and folding fans available.
*Please check the official exhibition website for detailed schedules and notes.

In addition to this exhibition, five paintings, including Goya’s “Vicente María de Vera de Aragón, Duke of La Roca” (c.1795), on loan from the San Diego Museum of Art, are also on display in the permanent exhibition room. The permanent exhibition can be viewed for free if you have a valid ticket for the “Dokomiru Exhibition” on the day, so don’t miss this one either.

Summary of “From where should we look at Western paintings? – From the Renaissance to the Impressionists: San Diego Museum of Art vs. National Museum of Western Art”

*The contents of this article are current as of the time of coverage. Please check the official exhibition website for the latest information.

Article provided by: Kokosil Ueno

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Tokyo Metropolitan Art Museum

A large-scale exhibition looking back on the 70-year creative career of Juan Miro, one of Spain's three great masters alongside Picasso and Dali, has opened at the Tokyo Metropolitan Art Museum in Ueno, Tokyo. The exhibition will run from March 1 to July 6, 2025.

*The images in this article were taken with permission at a press preview.

Juan Miro (1893-1983), a painter from Catalonia, Spain, gained fame in the 1920s as a representative Surrealist painter. He is known for his colorful and unique poetic style, which depicts motifs found in nature such as the sun, stars, and moon as symbolic symbols, but he continued to challenge himself with new forms of expression and pursue pure and universal art until his death at the age of 90. He was considered one of the most influential artists of the 20th century.

This exhibition will bring together about 100 masterpieces, including his representative Constellations series, paintings, ceramics, sculptures, and other works from his early to later years, to comprehensively introduce Miro's entire artistic career . This project is in response to the worldwide trend of reevaluation of Miro 40 years after his death, and it will be the largest retrospective in Japan since the exhibition in 1966, which Miro cooperated with while he was still alive.

The exhibition is divided into five chapters.

When the young Miro fell ill after failing to get a job as an accountant recommended by his father, he resolved to pursue his long-held dream of becoming a painter while recuperating at a villa in the mountain village of Mont Roig. In 1912, Miro returned to art school and studied cutting-edge artistic trends.
In Chapter 1, "Young Miro: Determination to Art," there are works that show that Miro adopted various styles of painting during this period, such as Cubism, Fauvism, and Cezanne, who was regarded as a father by the avant-garde artists of the time, as he explored his own expression.

Miró left behind many works that use the emotional landscapes of Montroig as a motif, including his early masterpiece House with Palm Trees (1918). Montroig, where he strengthened his artistic beliefs, was the source of all his creative endeavors throughout his life, a place where he deepened his thoughts on art, and a place where he reaffirmed his identity as a Catalan. This work is a representative example of Miró's so-called "miniaturist period," in which he abandoned the Fauvist style that had greatly influenced him until then, and began to focus on depicting fine details.

In 1920, Miro finally made his long-awaited visit to Paris, the center of the art world, and was fascinated by the city's modernity and avant-garde art. The following year, he set up a studio in Paris and began commuting back and forth between his home and Montroig.

Inspired by his interactions with local surrealist artists and poets, he turned to a more poetic style of expression that was far removed from concreteness. Between 1925 and 1927, he produced over 100 "dream paintings," in which he added amorphous, dynamic lines to vast backgrounds that represent emptiness, using them as "symbols that represent the progression of dreams. " Among these is the " Painting = Poetry" series, in which he painted insubstantial words as if they were motifs, without distinguishing them from concrete objects, freeing them from their original role.

Chapter 2, "Mont Roig – Paris: From the Countryside to the City of the Avant-Garde," introduces these activities from the 1920s. The "Dream Paintings" became a hot topic in the Paris art world, and Miro became popular as a surrealist painter in both name and reality.

Miró, who was deeply influenced by 17th-century Dutch painting, painted Dutch Interior I (1928) based on Hendrik Solf's The Lute Player (1661). The exhibition also features panels displaying Solf's original work and the preparatory sketches for this work, and by comparing them, it becomes clear that Miró has eliminated three-dimensionality and perspective from Solf's naturalistic everyday scene, transforming it into a surreal world of flat colors and organic forms.

Miró went into exile in Spain when the Spanish Civil War broke out in 1936, and continued to create in solitude throughout the ensuing Second World War, avoiding the ravages of war.
Chapter 3, "Escape and Poetics: Against the Backdrop of the War Era," highlights the masterpiece "Constellation" series , which he began producing in 1940 when he fled from Paris to a village in Normandy and completed while moving between Mallorca and Mont Roig.

The Constellations series are small gouache paintings on paper instead of canvas. It is said that Miro deliberately escaped from the horrific reality, comforted himself with the vast and beautiful starry sky and music by Mozart and Bach, and used them as inspiration to show hope beyond reality. Of the 23 works in total, three will be exhibited in this exhibition : Morning Star, Woman and Bird, and Night Figures Guided by the Phosphorescent Trail of a Snail (1940). This series is also notable for the fact that Miro established a symbolic system, but since each work is scattered around the world, this is a rare opportunity to view multiple works together.

On the other hand, from around 1928, Miro began to criticize the commercialization of art and the excessive attention given to artists, and he felt the urge to "assassinate painting." Gradually, he began to create what could be called anti-art and anti-painting styles, such as collages and objects that coexist with materials and elements unrelated to painting, such as "Untitled (Lovers of the Night)" (1934), which features toilet paper pasted onto aluminum foil, which is featured in this chapter. He continued to question the nature of traditional painting.

Miró first visited the United States in 1947 to be commissioned to paint a mural, but his reputation there had already been growing six years earlier, with a retrospective of his work being held at the Museum of Modern Art in New York. During his stay there, Miró was inspired by young artists, including Jackson Pollock, and after returning home he turned his attention to a wide range of creative endeavors, including etchings, lithographs, ceramics in collaboration with artisans, and sculpture.
Chapter 4, "Dream Atelier: Introspection and New Creations," traces these postwar developments in the 1950s and 1960s.

By the way, many of Miro's works have straightforward titles, but in fact, he liked to give a playful and poetic feeling to the relationship between the title and the work. A Red Dragonfly Pursuing a Snake Spiralling to a Comet (1951) is a typical example. Guided by the descriptive title, the viewer's eyes are misled on the screen just like a spiraling snake, trying to find the comet, snake, or red dragonfly. The vivid color scheme, meandering lines, and eerie depictions that encourage this curiosity are all Miro's devices. The ingenuity of the composition is astonishing.

This chapter also shows how his works, which began in 1956 after he completed his long-awaited large studio in Mallorca, became increasingly large, influenced by the giant paintings of American Abstract Expressionism. The large painting Figures before the Sun (1968) is one of the culminations of Miro's figurative language, and was inspired by the work of the Japanese painter-monk Sengai Gibon, who expressed the universe with the shapes of circles, triangles, and squares.

Miró had an interest in Japan from the early days, and during his visit to Japan in 1966, he recognized an affinity with traditional Japanese art and the ideas of Japanese artists. This work, with its confident brushstrokes evocative of calligraphy, is an important example of Miró's oriental sensibility, and it will be the first time in about 40 years that it will be exhibited outside Barcelona.

Chapter 5, "Towards the Essence of Painting," features works created in the 1970s and 1980s in his later years. Although Miro had already established himself as a world-famous master, he continued to examine his own activities even in his later years and did not hesitate to make bold and unconventional attempts.

For example, Burnt Canvas 2 (1973) is one of a series of five paintings in which paint was vigorously poured onto a white canvas, then stomped on it, cut up with a knife, and finally soaked in gasoline and set on fire. Rather than being the result of an impulsive act, the intention behind the work was to explore the beauty hidden in the materiality of the scorched canvas and paper, but this work also conveys an unfading energy and a strong rebellious spirit against art as high culture and art that has been reduced to mere property.

In his later years, Miro began to use brush strokes that reflected the movement of the body more. In his triptych Fireworks I, II, III (1974), which is similar in image to ink painting, Miro violently splashed paint and then applied brushstrokes over the paint that dripped down due to the action of gravity. This was influenced by American Abstract Expressionist painters, and he used a technique in which the creative process was guided by a new composition that was born from chance. This work is being exhibited in Japan for the first time.

Chapters 4 and 5 also explore Miro's active social, political, and cultural commitments through his poster production.

In the 1960s and 1970s, during the final days of the Franco dictatorship in Spain, Miro produced numerous posters as a way of expressing the hopes and demands of people who lacked a forum to openly voice their opinions. He also said, "An artist is someone who speaks out to convey something when others are silent," and the exhibition emphasizes Miro's stance as an artist, that is, that he did not study art throughout his life simply to speak about his own interests.

How did the painter Miro plunge into cutting-edge art throughout the 20th century and establish his own style while constantly placing himself in a state of creative tension? Come experience the process of his exploration and the appeal of his one-of-a-kind art at this exhibition.

Overview of the "Milo Exhibition"

*The contents of this article are current as of the time of coverage. Please check the official exhibition website for the latest information.

Article provided by: Kokosil Ueno

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