To celebrate the 25th anniversary of the Sainsbury Institute, we organised exhibitions featuring the works of Katsushika Hokusai (1760-1849) and e-tanzaku—small paper strips with pictures. The first exhibition, focused exclusively on Hokusai’s paintings, was held at Wells Maltings from 5-13 July. The second exhibition, which included both Hokusai’s paintings and the e-tanzaku, took place at the Shoe Factory Social Club from 17-25 July.
The inception of this plan dates back to my trip to Kobe in the summer of 2021, my first journey after the Covid-19 outbreak and a 14-day quarantine. On my first day out, I decided to explore the neighbourhoods near Rokko Station and discovered Moris Gallery. The shop is tucked away in an inconspicuous location, on the first floor of a modern apartment building, with only a small sign on the ground floor. Without prior knowledge of its whereabouts, it would be quite challenging to find. Though modest in size, the shop showcased an exquisite selection of Japanese tableware, carefully curated by the owner, Moriwaki Kyoko. Her keen eye for Japanese craftsmanship was evident in the array of items on display, and she regularly organised unique events, from cooking workshops utilising the tableware to inviting artists to share their works. Captivated by the shop, I began following their Instagram page, where I soon learned about their fascinating Tanzaku Zaku-Zaku event.
A few days later, I returned to Moris Gallery to visit this event. Although I was familiar with tanzaku artwork, I had never encountered such a vast collection, some of which, as I understood, dated back to the late 19th century. The affordability and uniqueness of the pieces, combined with the enthusiasm of visitors as they selected their own tanzaku from the vast collection—like a true treasure hunt—left a lasting impression on me.
This experience also brought to mind the British Museum’s plans for an upcoming exhibition on salon culture, which was in the early stages of development at the time. Titled “City Life and Salon Culture in Kyoto and Osaka: 1770–1900,” this exhibition, now open in the British Museum’s Mitsubishi Corporation Japanese Galleries, runs until March 2025. The theme, while fascinating, had not been widely introduced outside Japan, making the connection between the tanzaku event and the planned exhibition particularly striking to me. The following year, I revisited Moris Gallery with Dr. Yano Akiko, a curator at the British Museum, to attend the Tanzaku Zaku-Zaku event. With Akiko’s guidance, I gained a better understanding of the artists and the social and cultural context behind tanzaku production. This experience deepened my enthusiasm for organising a similar event in Norwich, although I remained uncertain about the logistics and finding a suitable venue to effectively recreate the event.
Later that year, Arai Miyuki, a curator at the Hokusai Museum in Obuse, reached out to the Sainsbury Institute to explore potential collaborations, such as workshops or exhibitions. She also expressed an interest in showcasing master replicas of Hokusai’s paintings, including the large ceiling painting at Ganshoin Temple in Obuse, which cannot be physically removed from the temple. Initially, I was uncertain whether we could manage such an exhibition, especially considering the challenges and costs involved in displaying Hokusai’s works. However, the idea of using master replicas exclusively in Norwich seemed both practical and effective for reaching a broader audience. Before, a Hokusai exhibition would typically be limited to the British Museum or other major institutions, not a smaller city. After several meetings, we reached a mutual agreement to host a Hokusai exhibition featuring these replicas as part of the Sainsbury Institute’s 25th anniversary celebrations.
During the planning phase, we encountered challenges in finding a suitable venue to exhibit both Hokusai’s works and the tanzaku. A photographer friend, Andi, suggested the Shoe Factory Social Club, located Norwich city entre, but we were initially concerned that the space might be too large. This led me to consider combining the two exhibitions, which would allow us to make effective use of the expansive display area. In addition to the exhibitions, we wanted to host an academic symposium on the theme of ‘reproduction’ in artworks, in collaboration with the Hokusai Museum. The Wells Maltings, where our Board member, Sir Tim Lankester, serves as a trustee, emerged as an ideal location for displaying Hokusai’s replicas and holding the symposium, inviting speakers from both Japan and the UK. Fortunately, we were able to secure both venues and officially launched the exhibition project as part of our 25th anniversary, in partnership with the Hokusai Museum and Moris Gallery, in the spring of 2023.
In October 2023, our team, including the artist Kojo Yumiko from Nagano, visited Obuse to view the Hokusai painting collection and the magnificent ceiling painting at Ganshoin. We also toured the Takai Kozan Memorial Museum, which preserves the original house where Hokusai stayed during his visit to Obuse in the mid-19th century. This visit deepened our understanding of how deeply Hokusai’s legacy is woven into the daily life of Obuse and how proud the local community is of this heritage.
The Hokusai Museum, established in 1976, attracts many tourists from both within and outside Japan. However, as Obuse is a small town in Nagano, its remote location makes it less accessible compared to museums in Tokyo. Additionally, given that the museum’s primary collection consists of Hokusai’s paintings—some of which were sourced from local collectors—it is challenging to transport these works abroad. Utilising replicas presents an innovative approach to introducing the museum’s collection to audiences in the UK, allowing for broader exposure while preserving the original works.
Seeing the original Hokusai paintings was an inspiring experience that significantly influenced the development of our event content. Kyoko from Moris Gallery had already been considering incorporating a tea ceremony into the event, in collaboration with tea master Watanabe Nozuki, to recreate the cultural exchange of the ‘salon’ environment where tanzaku were traditionally produced—a concept that also beautifully connects to the British Museum exhibition. One of the masterpieces from the Hokusai Museum collection is a pair of chrysanthemum paintings, which hold a special connection to Obuse. The large red and orange chrysanthemum (tomoe nishiki) depicted in the painting is unique to Obuse, making this artwork deeply intertwined with the town’s heritage. After viewing the painting, Kyoko was inspired to consider the chrysanthemum as a potential theme for the tea ceremony, establishing a meaningful connection between the two exhibitions and further enriching the cultural experience for attendees.
We invited local artist Kojo Yumiko to collaborate with us in creating a meaningful connection between the Hokusai and tanzaku exhibitions, as they share the same space. Kojo’s recent works, pencil drawings on traditional washi paper, made her an ideal partner for this project. We asked her to incorporate tanzaku materials and depict some of Hokusai’s iconic motifs, such as dragons. She graciously agreed to contribute her work to the exhibition, embracing the challenge with enthusiasm. The experience of viewing Hokusai’s works together with her was truly inspiring, deepening the creative process and enhancing the exhibition’s impact.
Curators from the Hokusai Museum visited Norwich in November 2023, followed by Kyoko and Hiromi from Moris Gallery in January 2024, offering us an inspiring and collaborative experience. During their visits, we toured potential venues and engaged in detailed discussions about the exhibition content. In January, we introduced local ceramic artist Sue Maufe to Kyoko and Hiromi. This connection led to Sue’s ceramics being selected as utensils for the tea ceremony event during the exhibition, resulting in a remarkable collaboration that beautifully merged East Asian tea traditions with the artistry of a local Norwich creator.
One concern was how to authentically present Hokusai’s master replicas. I visited NTT Art Technology in Tokyo, a company that has been producing high-quality master replicas in collaboration with Arstechne, alongside Ms. Arai to evaluate their exceptionally fine work. However, since many in the Norwich audience may not have previously encountered Japanese traditional art, our challenge was to create an experience that feels authentic, even when using replicas. We then planned to invite craftsmen to demonstrate the techniques involved in creating traditional Japanese painting hanging scrolls. While the entire process is, of course, a long-term project, our aim was to provide a glimpse into how a mounter handles these delicate objects. Ms. Oda Tamao, a hyōgushi (mounting specialist), kindly agreed to participate in the event, thanks to the generous support of the Daiwa Anglo-Japanese Foundation, which covered her travel expenses to the UK.
The Ishibashi Foundation also supported the symposium ‘Re:Imaging Production シン・複製’, where we delved into the role of replicas in preservation and display strategies within museums. This symposium was both essential and highly inspirational, providing valuable insights into cutting-edge technologies in replica production, traditional concepts behind creating replicas, and the integration of digital archiving projects into the educational sector. These discussions were invaluable in enhancing our understanding of how replicas can be effectively utilised in museum contexts.
Additionally, the Yoshino Gypsum Art Foundation generously contributed by covering part of the travel expenses from Japan, which was instrumental in making this event possible.
As we can see, numerous discussions and generous financial support from external funders made these exhibitions possible. I sincerely want to express my gratitude to our collaborators and supporters. Since this piece is already quite lengthy for a single blog post, I will return next month to delve into the exhibition and event content in more detail. I hope this has given you a helpful glimpse into the process of creating the exhibition, and I look forward to sharing more with you soon.
MATSUBA Ryoko
Lecturer in Japanese Digital Arts and Humanities, Sainsbury Institute