The exhibition “The UKIYO-E 2020 — Japan’s Three Great Ukiyo-e Collections,” featuring approximately 450 selected masterpieces from Japan’s three major ukiyo-e collections—the Ota Memorial Museum of Art, the Japan Ukiyo-e Museum, and the Hiraki Ukiyo-e Foundation—will be held at the Tokyo Metropolitan Art Museum in Ueno from July 23 (Thursday, holiday) to September 13 (Sunday), 2020.

Ukiyo-e, one of Japan's foremost artistic expressions, was cherished by the common people during the Edo period. Its popularity transcended borders, significantly influencing the European art world, including Impressionist painters, in the latter half of the 19th century and ushering in the major trend of Japonisme. Katsushika Hokusai's "Thirty-six Views of Mount Fuji: The Great Wave off Kanagawa" is also a globally renowned Japanese work, known as "The Great Wave," beloved by many to this day.

While ukiyo-e prints are often thought to have been scattered overseas, Japan possesses ukiyo-e collections of the world's highest caliber. The exhibition “The UKIYO-E 2020 — Japan’s Three Great Ukiyo-e Collections” will showcase approximately 450 masterpieces, with about 150 selected from each of the three major ukiyo-e collections renowned in Japan for both quality and quantity: the Ota Memorial Museum of Art, the Japan Ukiyo-e Museum, and the Hiraki Ukiyo-e Foundation.

Highlights of this exhibition include representative works by over 60 artists, from the progenitor of ukiyo-e, Hishikawa Moronobu, to Suzuki Harunobu, Kitagawa Utamaro, Tōshūsai Sharaku, Katsushika Hokusai, Utagawa Hiroshige, and Utagawa Kuniyoshi, who was active in the late Edo period. Furthermore, the works are in excellent condition. Particular attention should be paid to Hokusai's "Thirty-six Views of Mount Fuji" triptych—"The Great Wave off Kanagawa," "Fine Wind, Clear Morning," and "South Wind, Clear Sky"—and Hiroshige's "Fifty-three Stations of the Tōkaidō," specifically "Shōno, Clear Weather" and "Kanbara, Night Snow," which will be displayed throughout both the first and second periods.

Additionally, three Important Cultural Properties, including Ishikawa Toyonobu's "Beauty Under the Blossoms," and 115 Important Art Objects, such as Torii Kiyonaga's "Ferry on the Rokugō River," will be exhibited. This exhibition promises to be a delightful exploration of the charm of ukiyo-e prints, nurtured by the popular culture of Edo.

The UKIYO-E 2020 — Japan’s Three Great Ukiyo-e Collections
Dates | July 23 (Thursday, holiday) – September 13 (Sunday), 2020
Venue | Tokyo Metropolitan Art Museum
Address | 8-36 Ueno Park, Taito-ku, Tokyo
Organizers | The Tokyo Metropolitan Foundation for History and Culture, Tokyo Metropolitan Art Museum, Ota Memorial Museum of Art, Japan Ukiyo-e Museum, Hiraki Ukiyo-e Foundation, The Nikkei, BS TV Tokyo, and others
Cooperation | Shogakukan