Featured Events in Japan in June, 2025 (June Updated)

The Matsuzakaya Museum of Art will be holding the "Pokémon x Crafts Exhibition -- Great Discoveries of Beauty and Crafts" from Saturday, April 26, 2025 to Sunday, June 15, 2025. The exhibition will be held at the National Crafts Museum (Ishikawa Prefecture) from March to June 2023, and will feature approximately 80 works that take on Pokémon using a wide variety of craft materials and techniques, and are the result of inspiration, difficulty, and enjoyment. Afterwards, the work was exhibited at JAPAN HOUSE LOS ANGELES in the US before returning to Japan in triumph, where it was exhibited at the Sagawa Art Museum in Shiga and the MOA Museum of Art in Shizuoka, before being shown at the Azabudai Hills Gallery in Tokyo from November 1st. The Aichi venue will be the fifth domestic venue for the exhibition. We plan to add new works, and deliver an even more evolved "Pokemon x Crafts Exhibition." Please look forward to it. [Purpose of the project] Pokémon x Crafts Exhibition: Great Discoveries of Beauty and Crafts What kind of chemical reaction would occur if Pokémon and crafts were brought together head-on? Twenty artists, from Living National Treasures to young artists, have taken on this question in earnest. Works that evoke the shapes, gestures and even aura of Pokémon. Works that trace memories from the game, such as evolution, communication, the setting of their journey and highly effective moves. And Pokémon that are drawn to stylish attire, such as vessels that add color to our daily lives, kimonos and obidome. What will the works that await you at the venue do... make you excited, enchanted, grin or give you chills? Enjoy discovering beauty and crafts amplified by the power of multiplication.  "booster" ©Yoshida Taiichiro "Booster" 2022 Private collection Photography: Taku Saijo  "Fern Arabesque Shaymin" ©Kasumi Ueha, Fern Arabesque Shaymin, 2022, Private Collection Photography: Taku Saijo "Venusaur" © Imai Kanshin, Venusaur, 2022, Private collection Photography: Taku Saijo  "Island Connect" © Eiichi Shiroma, Ryukyu Bingata Kimono "Shima Tsunagi" 2022, Private Collection Photography: Taku Saijo

With the explosive growth of artificial intelligence (AI) and the integration of virtual and real worlds, the latest cutting-edge technologies have quickly penetrated our daily lives. This tendency has become especially apparent since the COVID-19 pandemic, when many human activities shifted towards virtual space. Looking back, the progress of art and technology has run parallel to each other throughout the course of history, a phenomenon that is especially evident in the field of computer art and video art. While recent innovations in video game engines and AI offer unprecedented possibilities for artists, the advent of generative AI also has raised significant concerns. Such developments are now attracting considerable attention in various fields and industries, including the contemporary art world.

Beginning in the 1920s, architects including Le Corbusier and Mies van der Rohe explored new residential designs with function and comfort in mind. Their experimental visions and innovative ideas eventually intersected with everyday life, greatly reshaping people’s lifestyles. This exhibition focuses on seven dimensions of modern houses: hygiene, materials, windows, kitchen, furnishings, media, and landscape. Approximately 14 masterworks of residential architecture spanning the world will be presented in detail through photographs and drawings, sketches, models, furniture, textiles, tableware, magazines, graphics, and films. The modernity of this residential architecture in this exhibition continues to resonate today, offering an opportunity to reflect on our own living spaces and ways of living.

The techniques of woodblock printing that flourished in the Edo period and Meiji era developed into a modernized artform called Shin-hanga in 1915. Shin-hanga builds on the tradition of collaborative work among the publisher, carver, printer, and designer, while also reflecting modern, eclectic tastes. Landscapes by Kawase Hasui (1883–1957) and Yoshida Hiroshi (1876–1950) as well as images of beauties by Hashiguchi Goyō (1880–1921) and Itō Shinsui (1898–1972) captivated Japanese people of Taishō and Shōwa eras and are still widely admired around the world. In conjunction with the special exhibitions, Tsutaya Jūzaburō: Creative Visionary of Edo andUkiyo-ein Play, this exhibition explores the variety and depth of woodblock printing and its expressive forms.

"Design Ah! Neo" is an exhibition that expands the concept of the program "Design Ah! Neo" currently airing on NHK Educational TV into an experiential space. It has been held as a "Design Ah! Exhibition" at 21_21 DESIGN SIGHT in 2013, and at six museums across the country, including the Miraikan, the National Museum of Emerging Science and Innovation, and the Toyama Prefectural Museum of Art from 2018 to 2021. The third "Design Ah! Neo" exhibition will exhibit new works with new themes, while retaining the concept of encouraging children to enjoy various thoughts and discoveries about design.

Ancient DNA research involves deciphering minute traces of DNA remaining in the bones of ancient people excavated from ruins, and tracing the footsteps of humanity. In recent years, with the development of technology, it has made great strides, and it has become clear that the path that Homo sapiens walked was far more complicated than previously imagined. This exhibition uses ancient human bones and archaeological materials from all over Japan, as well as high-definition CG images of ancient human skulls, to convey the long path that the Japanese people have taken, as revealed by the latest research, and the message that the collective history has for the future.

Aubusson, a city in central France, has been known as a place where tapestries have been woven since the 15th century, and in 2009, tapestries woven in this region and the traditional techniques were registered as UNESCO Intangible Cultural Heritage. The Aubusson International Tapestry Center, which opened in 2016, introduces the history and techniques of tapestries and carpets through a wide range of examples. Since 2019, a project has been underway to weave scenes selected from Hayao Miyazaki's animated films into giant tapestries. In this special exhibition, a tapestry depicting a scene from the film "Spirited Away," one of the works in the project, will be shown for the first time in Japan. Materials related to the production of tapestries will also be exhibited at the venue, and Aubusson's tapestry techniques will be introduced.

In 2025, Osaka will be transformed into a giant art museum! "Learning: Osaka Kansai International Art Festival 2025" will be held from April to October. The exhibition will cover various areas of Osaka and take the World Expo as an opportunity to bring an unprecedented art feast. Among the first wave of 28 international artists announced, heavyweight creators such as surreal sculpture master Ron Mueck and conceptual artist Maurizio Cattelan will surely present a visual feast that subverts imagination!

Walk through this Western-style Japanese garden and enjoy the blooming roses. It is famous for its fusion of Eastern and Western aesthetics; the Western architecture recreates the British style of the 20th century, while the Japanese garden embodies the authentic Japanese spirit. All of this is presented in the gorgeous scent of roses!

"MUSIC CIRCUS FUKUOKA partner with SoftBank HAWKS" is a festival born from the collaboration between Fukuoka's champion baseball team, the Fukuoka SoftBank Hawks, and the Osaka-born music festival "MUSIC CIRCUS." The unique experience of an all-night event in a dome has garnered audience support, and it will be held for the sixth time in 2025. MUSIC CIRCUS FUKUOKA 2025 is an unmissable event for music fans! This Fukuoka festival builds on the success of previous Osaka festivals and gathers many renowned artists. Attendees can enjoy electrifying live performances by AK-69, GADORO, Jin Dogg, and 5Leaf, as well as outstanding DJ sets by KENNY and YAMAHIRO.

Tokyo Metropolitan Government has created a new tourist resource for nighttime viewing by using the exterior wall of the Tokyo Metropolitan Government Building No. 1 as a screen to express a variety of art with light and sound, and to perform projection mapping all year round in order to activate and revitalize nighttime tourism. This time, as the 45th anniversary is approaching next year, the Tokyo Metropolitan Government will begin showing works using the world-famous "Pac-Man". The game board appears on the outer wall of the Tokyo Metropolitan Government Building, and Pac-Man, who is making a futuristic scene, eats up everything vividly. The music of the game of Pac-Man, which has a futuristic feel, and the music of the highly friendly soundtrack maker Mr. Haraguchi Sasuke have produced. Please enjoy the collaborative work of Pac-Man and Tokyo that can only be seen in the Tokyo Metropolitan Government Building.

What kind of image do you have of the Crown? The origin of the Crown was Kiichiro Toyoda's desire to "make a passenger car for the masses and enrich life in Japan." This year marks the 70th year since its birth. It has continued for 16 generations as the longest-lived passenger car made in Japan. In this special exhibition, we will introduce all 16 generations of the car, dividing the period from its launch in 1955 to the present into the founding period, maturity period, and transformation period. It has not been an easy road so far. Why has it survived for 70 years? We hope you will learn about the history of the Crown's development, which has been repeated through "succession" and "innovation" in pursuit of the "Crown-like" style to suit "Japanese lifestyles" that change with the times.

With the guiding theme “Plain, Simple, Useful”, Sir Terence Conran (1931 – 2020) revolutionized the world of design, his comprehensive gaze capturing all aspects of life from the individual, to the urban, and even to society at large. This exhibit seeks to depict Conran as he was through his design philosophy, which played a major role in revolutionizing English lifestyles, and set off a design boom worldwide. This exhibit graced Tokyo’s Station Gallery last year, and migrated to Fukuoka this year on April 19th. In the immediate postwar period Conran began his career as a textile and tableware pattern designer, and in 1964 opened his groundbreaking home styling store “Habitat” which became a massive hit and chain in England, earning him significant fame as an entrepreneur.

The Fukuoka Bordeaux Wine Festival is a Bordeaux wine festival that was founded in 2017 to commemorate the 35th anniversary of the sister city relationship between Fukuoka City and Bordeaux, France. This popular event brings together wine lovers and tourists from all over Fukuoka Prefecture to enjoy the delicious food of Fukuoka and the charm of Bordeaux wine. There are up to 100 different types of wine to choose from, from light to full-bodied! You can taste first and second class wines from the Big Five (five famous wineries in the Bordeaux region). Choose from a variety of red, white and rosé wines to find the one that suits your taste. In addition to exquisite cuisine that pairs perfectly with the wine, there will be a wealth of activities to experience French history and culture. You will be mesmerized by live performances of opera, chanson, ballet, accordion, jazz and more.

From the late 1960s to the 1970s, the "underground," commonly known as "angura," took the Japanese art world by storm, mainly in the urban space of Tokyo. The underground, which replaced the "avant-garde" as the gathering point of cutting-edge art, was imported to Japan from the United States through experimental films and spread to fields such as fine art, music, manga, design, theater, and dance, becoming a trend recognized by the general public in just a few years. However, because it was established through its interaction with the anti-establishment movement of the time, it disappeared in the early 1970s as the movement declined. Although it was a short-lived phenomenon, underground culture had a great impact on postwar Japanese society, and it can be said that it remains as a style to this day. In addition, by its very nature, underground culture focused on temporary "events" rather than physical "works," and placed importance on the "places" that welcomed its bearers. For this reason, the underground is seen as the atmosphere of the times, and its actual nature has yet to be clarified. "MAM Research 011: Tokyo Underground 1960s-1970s - A turning point in postwar Japanese culture" will display many materials, mainly ephemera (printed material intended for temporary use), that are suited to conveying the rise and fall of underground culture in Tokyo. Furthermore, by examining these materials, we will attempt to look in detail at the history of "underground," its ideas and those who carried it, as well as its spread and limitations.

The National Museum of Modern Art, Tokyo is pleased to present Hilma af Klint (tentative title) from March 4 to June 15, 2025. This will be the first major retrospective in Asia of Hilma af Klint (1862–1944), a pioneer of abstract painting. The painter from Sweden has been reevaluated in recent years as a creator of abstract paintings that preceded her contemporaries, such as Wassily Kandinsky and Piet Mondrian. For many years, her oeuvre of more than 1,000 works was known only to a very few people. As late as in the 1980s, several exhibitions began to introduce her works, and by the turn of the 21st century, her presence became international all at once. Her 2018 retrospective at the Guggenheim Museum in New York, the U.S., attracted 600,000 visitors, the largest attendance in the museum’s history. Including The Ten Largest (1907), a set of ten paintings over three meters high, all 140 works in this exhibition will travel to Japan for the first time. Centering on her representative accomplishment, The Paintings for the Temple, the exhibition will provide an overview of af Klint’s career, while introducing materials left by the artist and diverse sources of her inspiration, including the spiritualism and the women’s movements of her time.

Tsutaya Juzaburo (1750-97), a prominent publisher in the Edo period, is known for publishing Ukiyo-e artists such as Kitagawa Utamaro and Toshusai Sharaku, who are now considered world-class artists. This exhibition takes a close look at Tsutaju's activities, showcasing the diverse culture of Edo, focusing on the Tenmei and Kansei periods (1781-1801). With the red-light district and kabuki of Edo as his backdrop, Tsutaju deepened his friendships with kyoka poets and comic poets during the rise of kyoka poetry. He expanded his network of samurai, wealthy townspeople, popular actors, comic poets, and artists in every direction, linking various fields and introducing various new ideas to the publishing industry through a kind of media mix. Tsutajyu used his business acumen to endlessly innovate the content business. What is rooted in this is a thorough user (consumer) perspective, and the vitality with which he pursued things that people would enjoy and find interesting. This exhibition is in collaboration with NHK's 2025 taiga drama "Berabou: Tsutaju Eika no Yumebanashi," which will feature Tsutaya Jusaburo as the main character. Through a look at Tsutaju's publishing activities along with aspects of the Edo cityscape, visitors will be able to experience not only the part Tsutaju played in the publishing culture of the late Edo period, but also the values ​​and artistry that he created.

The Wakamatsu Hydrangea Festival aims to promote the charm of Takatoyama City, which has the largest number of hydrangeas in the prefecture (approximately 74,700 plants), to both the city and beyond, and to inject vitality into Wakamatsu City. (The event began in 1999, and this year marks the 27th anniversary.) Takatoyama’s mountain hydrangeas bloom from late May to early June each year, and its western hydrangeas bloom in mid-June. This year’s Hydrangea Festival will have a branch venue event on June 1 (Sunday) when the mountain hydrangeas are in bloom, and a main venue event on June 8 (Sunday) and June 15 (Sunday) when the western hydrangeas are in bloom.

Hamitsuki Inari Shrine is famous for praying for protection from disasters, prosperity of business, and safety of buildings. Reclamation of the sea southeast of Edo began long before the founding of Edo (1603), but whenever the embankment was built, it was washed away, which was a big challenge for Tsukiji Market. However, one night, when people held a worship ceremony for the gods who appeared on the sea, the waves stopped and the building was completed in 1659 (Manji 2). The Tsukiji Lion Festival is said to have originated from the lion heads that people carry with them, a dragon that controls the clouds, a tiger that controls the wind, and a lion that can scare all living things with just a roar.

Are you ready for a great party? Join Kuromi, My Melody and Hapidanbui for an exciting exhibition! Dive into interactive displays, dance to hit music, and enjoy hands-on fun.

Joan Miró (1893-1983) is one of the most important Spanish artists of the 20th century, as famous as Picasso and Dali. His creations experienced changes from Fauvism, Realism to Surrealism, and finally established his own unique style. His paintings are famous for their strong colors, imagination and poetry. This exhibition will present the artist's works collected by the Joan Miró Foundation. Through Miró's representative works from his early years to his later years, it will review his creative career of more than 60 years and show the development of his artistic language and creative process. .

Legend has it that the Kannon of Kiyomizu-dera Temple transforms into a blue dragon and drinks from the waterfalls at night, so this event is held to honor the Yasha Goddess, and to pray for the people who come to worship. The dancing blue dragon parades from Okuno to the cobblestone streets around Kiyomizu-dera Temple. The blue dragon is believed to be one of the four great gods that protect the city of Kyoto. In addition to the blue dragon, there are men dressed in traditional samurai clothes, and the streets are filled with music and spectacular dancing. It's really magical! The Spring Festival is on March 14-15 and April 3. The Fall Festival is September 14-15, starting at 14:00 (2pm).

The official name of Sensoji Temple comes from the Golden Dragon Mountain, and it is called "Golden Dragon Mountain Sensoji Temple", and the name "Golden Dragon Dance" comes from the name of this mountain. "Golden Dragon Dance" is a dance that started in 1958 to commemorate the reconstruction of the main hall of Sensoji Temple, Kannon Hall. This dance is based on the story of Guanyin Bodhisattva enshrined in Sensoji Temple. According to legend, she appeared as a golden dragon that descended from the sky, and overnight she created a thousand pine trees that symbolize a good harvest. The 18-meter-long, 88-kilogram shining golden dragon dances gorgeously to the music of the celebration, and this scene is absolutely impressive.

During the Sengoku period, various cultural artifacts from Europe and Asia were brought to Japan through trade with the Western countries. This exhibition will focus on the various aspects of exchange with the world that had a major impact on Japanese society, such as the introduction of Christianity and firearms.

The Rose Festival aims to be the most beautiful rose festival in Japan. About 510 varieties and 3,100 roses will bloom, creating a spectacular sight with the most roses in the year. [Major events] ・Food Truck Food Festival (May 10th and 11th) ・Night Rose Garden (May 16th, 17th, 18th, 23rd, 24th and 25th) ・Flower and Plant Workshop (May 17th, 18th, 23rd and 24th) ・Stage performance by comedian Yoshio Kojima (May 31st) ・Melted Cheese Festival (June 7th and 8th)

The Nankinmachi Dragon Boat Festival Zongzi Exhibition is an annual event held in Nankinmachi, Kobe, Japan, to celebrate the traditional Chinese Dragon Boat Festival. During the event, Nankinmachi will hold various Dragon Boat Festival-related celebrations, including Zongzi tasting and display. Visitors can experience the rich and colorful Chinese culture here, especially tasting Zongzi of various flavors.