Exhibitions Archive - Sainsbury Institute for the Study of Japanese Arts and Cultures

Circles of Stone: Stonehenge and Prehistoric Japan

Co-curated by Professor Simon Kaner, Executive Director of the Sainsbury Institute Circles of Stone: Stonehenge and Prehistoric Japan, on display at the Stonehenge Visitor Centre 30 September 2022 – 3 September 2023, celebrates the rich culture of prehistoric Japan. Through a number of exquisite objects, some seen for the first time outside of Japan, the exhibition tells the story of Japanese settlements and stone circles of the middle and late Jomon periods, roughly the same time when Stonehenge was built and used. Although there was no contact between Japan and Britain in prehistory, there are surprising parallels between them. In both areas, people built stone circles, made elaborate pots and […]

Avebury and the Stone circles of Jomon Japan

On display at Avebury, Wiltshire from May 2023. The prehistoric Jomon inhabitants of the Japanese archipelago constructed stone monuments which, although not megalithic, are comparable in area and function to the great stone circles of Avebury and Stonehenge. They were built and used over many years spanning multiple generations. They were used to mark time and the passing of the seasons. They were oriented on skyscapes and features in the landscapes. They are associated with burials of ancestors. There are more than 50 stone circles and other comparable features known in Japan. This short film introduces some of these sites. One of the first to be fully investigated was at […]

Kyōsai: The Israel Goldman Collection

19 March – 19 June 2022
Royal Academy of Arts, London

The Citi exhibition Manga マンガ

23 May – 26 Aug 2019
British Museum, London

Julius Bissier and East Asia: The Realm of My Imagination

19 May – 23 Sep 2018
Städtische Museen Freiburg, Germany

Global Perspectives on British Archaeology

8 Oct 2017
The Forum, Norwich

Japanese Art Dolls: Muñecas artísticas de Ohno Hatsuko

10 May – 23 Jun 2017
Centro Cultural Hispano-Japonés, Salamanca, Spain

Kakiemon: a history of making Japanese porcelain

23 June – 21 August 2016
British Museum, London

One Thing Leads to Another – A Ceramic Journey

3 Dec – 11 Nov 2015
Sainsbury Institute, Norwich

Dressed to impress: netsuke and Japanese men’s fashion

19 Jun – 17 Aug 2014
British Museum, London

JAKUCHU Exhibition with high resolution reproduction

11 – 15 Mar 2014
Asia House, 63 New Cavendish Street, London

Shunga: Sex and Pleasure in Japanese Art

3 Oct – 5 Jan 2014
British Museum, London

Beauty in Detail: Japanese Art Dolls by Ohno Hatsuko

7 Jun 30 Oct 2013
Corfu Museum of Asian Art, Greece

1000 Years of the Art of Japanese Books: Treasures from the Tenri Central Library

Exhibition, Partners EventThursday 18 Apr 2013 – Saturday 22 Jun 2013 | The Brunei Gallery, SOAS, University of LondonThornhaugh Street, Russell Square, London WC1H 0XG About the Workshop Tenri Central Library, in Japan, holds an extraordinary collection of rare books, including manuscripts and documents, about 1,830,000, roughly two-thirds of which are Japanese, Korean and Chinese books, and one-third Western, including Arabic and African books. 2013 will see J400 an international celebration of the 400th anniversary of Japan-UK relations with a series of cultural events planned in Japan and the UK throughout the year. This exhibition is to be part of that cultural programme intending to present together and show for […]

Japanese Art Dolls: Figurative Sculptures by Ohno Hatsuko

13 Nov – 16 Nov 2012
Assembly House, Norwich

Crown type pot. Middle Jōmon period, about 3000BC, earthenware. Excavated from the Iwanohara site, Niigata prefecture. Nagaoka Municipal Science Museum

Flame and Water Pots: Prehistoric Ceramic Art from Japan

4 Oct 2012 – 20 Jan 2013

British Museum, London