Memories of Emperor Showa’s 64-year reign from 1926 to 1989, evoke mixed feelings. It was a momentous period that started with financial and growing militarization followed by war, defeat, reconstruction, and rapid economic growth. During an economic bubble, the era ended on a high. People who had endured poverty and suffering came to enjoy prosperity and comfort. Positive change succeeded turmoil.

Had the emperor lived, 2026 would have marked the 100th year of his reign. This inspired the museum to select 100 works painted during the Showa era’s 64 years. The paintings on show richly document the winds of change breathed by the era’s artists. These 100 works express the foundations of Japan today. Here in Arashiyama, you can feel the breeze blowing from that special era as you wonder at the nostalgia evoked by Showa enthusiasm and artistic passion.
For making this exhibition possible, we would like to express our sincere gratitude to all those involved in putting on this exhibition.

Section 1: Showa Winds: Before and During the War

Artistic activity is shaped by the world the artist lives in. Artists who worked during the Showa era felt the winds of their time. Before, during, and after the war the social climate was markedly different.
Before the war, most Japanese people aspired to a traditional lifestyle, which created a demand for hanging scrolls and folding screens to decorate tokonoma alcoves and living rooms. It was not unusual for people and companies to commission commemorative picture books to present as celebratory gifts on special occasions.

When war came, in need of reassurance that the cause was just and victory was possible, people wanted paintings of sacred objects such as Mount Fuji, shrines, and the three-legged Yatagarasu crow. Wartime blasts blew insistently across the art world.

 

Section 2: Showa Winds: Post War

In post-war Japan, artists faced unanticipated headwinds. Critics loudly proclaimed that the war was lost because an outdated national mindset was unable to relinquish tradition. If Japanese artists clung to suggesting the wind or depicting the moon or flowers and birds, Japanese nihonga art would die out.

Novice and mid-career artists had to make their way in a radically altered climate. They evolved a postwar style using thick multilayers to create highly colored works. Taking advantage of the rich, deep tones arising from thick application, breathing new life into Japanese art, Higashiyama Kaii rendered European landscapes, Sugiyama Yasushi painted the sphinx, and Tokuoka Shinsen and Takayama Tatsuo expressed their inner vision depicting flowers, birds, and people. Kayama Matazō, while exploring the traditional beauty of the Rinpa school and other schools, also steered a course in the winds of change and became a standard-bearer for his generation.

 

Section 3. Ikeda Yōson and Tomita Keisen: Showa Era Arashiyama Breeze

Even today, attracting visitors from the world over, Arashiyama is loved as a scenic location. Including the Showa era, its ambience and natural beauty has been appreciated for more than a thousand years. In the Panorama Gallery you can see work by two Showa painters Ikeda Yōson (1895–1988) and Tomita Keisen (1879–1936), who loved the same Arashiyama scenery that lies beyond the gallery windows.

 

Exhibition Overview

Title	100th Anniversary of Showa 1: An Era Colored by Seihō, Kaii, Matazō, et al
List of Works	To be provided
Dates	January 31 (Sat.) 2026 – April 12  (Sun.) 2026  　1st period: January 31 (Sat.) – March 2 (Mon.) 　2nd period: March 4 (Wed.) – April 12 (Sun.)  *Every Tuesday and Sunday will be “Feel Free to Talk” days
Opening Hours	10:00 – 17:00 (last entry 16:30)
Closed	February 17: facility inspection March 3: exhibition exchange March 17: facility inspection
Venue	Fukuda Art Museum: 3-16 Susukinobabachō Saga-Tenryuji, Ukyō-ku, Kyoto Saga Arashiyama Museum of Arts & Culture: 11 Susukinobabachō Saga-Tenryuji, Ukyō-ku, Kyoto
Entry Fee	General / University student: ¥1,500 (¥1,400) High school student: ¥900 (¥800) Elementary / Junior high school student: ¥500 (¥400) Disabled person and up to one helper: ¥900 (¥800) * Prices in parentheses are for groups of 20 or more. * Free for preschool children   <Combo Tickets with Saga Arashiyama Museum of Arts & Culture> General / University student: ¥2,300 High school student: ¥1,300 Elementary / Junior high school student: ¥750 Disabled person and up to one helper: ¥1,300 *If you purchase an online ticket of the Fukuda Art Museum, you will get a discount for the entry fee of the Saga Arashiyama Museum of Arts & Culture. Therefore, you can enter both museums as the same price of the combo ticket.
Supported by	Kyoto Prefecture, Kyoto City, Kyoto City Board of Education