Featured Events in Nagoya in June, 2025 (May 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

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.

Noritake was founded in 1904 (Meiji 37) with the aim of manufacturing dinner sets for export. A dinner set is a set of tableware with a set size and purpose for the number of people. Since successfully manufacturing such sets in 1914 (Taisho 3), the company has developed and sold shapes and patterns to meet market needs. At times, the company has sought added value beyond the tableware's original function and design in order to provide products that are in line with the times. This trend accelerated after the period of high economic growth. When consumers had the financial means to spend on interior design, Noritake sold ceramic reproductions of works by painters, calligraphers, and illustrators. In the mid-1960s, when the penetration rate of black-and-white televisions exceeded 90%, the company also began to produce melamine children's tableware decorated with characters from anime and puppet shows. The 1970s marked an era of fashion and diversification of everyday items. Noritake, which places emphasis on developing high-value-added products that add color to life, began manufacturing and selling tableware in 1977 in collaboration with a famous fashion designer. This was the beginning of the boom in designer and character products in the ceramics industry. This led to an increase in design collaborations and joint development with artists and other companies. In recent years, with the growth of content businesses such as manga and anime, the needs and target demographics of character products have expanded. The expansion of sales networks with the spread of online services has increased consumers' options, and products are increasingly required to have value other than functionality and a story. Against this backdrop, collaborations that utilize the mutual advantages of companies are not uncommon. During its long history, Noritake has cultivated the technology to commercialize high-quality models with rich colors and delicate patterns. Enjoy the world of co-creation created by sharing the desire to utilize this to deliver products that resonate with your heart.

The exhibition is an expansion of the exhibition "Ikimono: Edo-Tokyo Life with Animals," which was jointly organized in Paris in 2022 by the Edo-Tokyo Museum in Tokyo and the Maison de la Culture du Japon à Paris.

Tsurumai Park is the first park established in Nagoya in 1909. Cherry blossoms, roses, irises and other flowers are planted in the park, making it a famous flower viewing spot. The iris pond, where you can see the iris, the district flower of Showa Ward, will be lit up at night. Please enjoy the dreamy view of the iris pond at night.

Famous swords were the supreme treasure of samurai families. Not only were they excellent weapons, but over the years, they have been possessed by many rulers during times of war, or given as gifts at happy turning points in life, and as a result, their value has increased even more. In this way, for hundreds of years, many famous swords have been passed down from hand to hand, and have been preserved and passed down to the present day along with their gorgeous sword fittings that are befitting of their status. This exhibition will focus on the swords and sword fittings in the collection of the Tokugawa Art Museum, and will display famous swords associated with famous warlords and daimyo, as well as gorgeous sword fittings, while focusing on the various stories surrounding the works. This large-scale exhibition, befitting the 90th anniversary of the museum's opening, will feature a selection of national treasures, important cultural properties, and famous items. The profound world of swords and sword fittings, which continue to be fascinating even through the ages, will be introduced from both the historical background and the beauty of the works themselves.