Issue:
July 2025 | Exhibition
Ukiyo-e prints curated by Shunichi Kida
June 30 - August 1, 2025
For the month of July, the FCCJ Exhibition Committee is proud to welcome a rare and spectacular exhibition of ukiyo-e prints meticulously reproduced for the club by Shunichi Kida, a pre-eminent “dye creative artist” active in Japan and abroad. With the theme of Mt Fuji, the ukiyo-e artwork will be printed on large-format high-quality Japanese washi rice paper so that visitors can enjoy these masterpieces down to the smallest detail. The world's most famous image by Hokusai Katsushika, Thirty-six views of Mt. Fuji, Kanagawa-oki Namiura, or the so-called Great Wave, will be the exhibit’s highlight as it covers a full 3-meter high wall.
As a very special surprise for the FCCJ, ukiyo-e expert commentator Kentaro Makino will give a lecture on July 10 to expound on the wonders and depth of ukiyo-e. This reception/lecture will be one of the exhibition committee’s highlights for 2025, so we encourage attendance.
Ukiyo-e, a popular art form of the Edo period, is currently enjoying great popularity at home and abroad.
Today, ukiyo-e is appreciated in a variety of formats, including immersive events utilizing new digital technology and projection mapping, but the Ukiyo-e produced at the time were quite small. However, thanks to Kida's revolutionary technique of printing on washi paper, the prints can now be enlarged to cover a full wall, allowing viewers to clearly see not only the pictures, but also the skillful carving and printing techniques employed. Ukiyo-e greatly influenced Art Nouveau as well as the Impressionist movement of the late 19th Century, most notably the works of Monet, Renoir and Van Gogh. Shunichi Kida, responsible for reproducing these magnificent works, is also an art producer who has created installations for art museums and spectacular event stages, airport displays and hotel lobbies around the world.
