The “Shinjuku Kabukicho Shunga Exhibition – A Moment of ‘Wa’ Woven Through Culture” will be held from Saturday, July 26 to Tuesday, September 30 at the Noh Theater in Kabukicho, Shinjuku, Tokyo.
The exhibition will feature approximately 100 shunga (erotic woodblock prints) from the Edo period, including works by Hishikawa Moronobu, Kitagawa Utamaro, Katsushika Hokusai, and Utagawa Kuniyoshi. These pieces are drawn from the renowned collection of Mitsuru Uragami, head of Uragami Sokyudo, who is known as the world’s leading collector of Hokusai Manga.
A prominent figure in promoting shunga both in Japan and abroad, Uragami was a contributor and sponsor of the Shunga: Sex and Pleasure in Japanese Art exhibition at the British Museum in London in 2013, and played a central role in realizing Japan’s first major shunga exhibition at Eisei-Bunko Museum in Tokyo in 2015, which attracted some 210,000 visitors.
Shunga refers to paintings that include sexual imagery. Also known as “warai-e” (laughing pictures) or marked with the “wa” seal, these works were enjoyed as a form of entertainment during the Edo period — often shared among friends in a light-hearted, humorous setting. At the same time, shunga held significant artistic value; it is said that “no ukiyo-e artist ever refrained from drawing shunga,” highlighting its importance within the ukiyo-e tradition. Many pieces draw inspiration from Chinese poetry, Japanese waka, and classical literature, offering not just visual enjoyment but also intellectual pleasure through literary allusion, parody (yatsushi), and layered metaphor (mitate). As such, shunga is far more than erotic imagery—it represents a convergence of various elements of Japanese culture.
Serving as art director for the exhibition is Yasutaka Hayashi of the Tokyo-based artist collective Chim↑Pom from Smappa!Group, founded in 2005. He will transform the entire venue—the main stage, hashigakari bridge, and seating area of the Kabukicho Noh Theater—into an immersive exhibition space.
Shinjuku Kabukicho Shunga Exhibition – A Moment of ‘Wa’ Woven Through Culture
Exhibition Information
Dates: Saturday, July 26 – Tuesday, September 30
Venue: Kabukicho Noh Theater (2nd Floor, Lions Plaza Shinjuku, 2-9-18 Kabukicho, Shinjuku-ku, Tokyo)
Number of Works on Display: Approximately 100 shunga pieces from the collection of Mitsuru Uragami / Uragami Sokyudo
Note: Admission restricted to ages 18 and over
Organizer: Smappa!Group
Special Cooperation: Uragami Sokyudo
Supervision: Mitsuru Uragami (President of Uragami Sokyudo; Executive Director, International Ukiyo-e Society)
Planning: Maki Tezuka (President, Smappa!Group)
Art Direction & Exhibition Design: Yasutaka Hayashi (Chim↑Pom from Smappa!Group)
Venue Design: Takaaki Mitsui
Planning Cooperation: Yuko Yamamoto (ANOMALY), Koichi Morota (Morota Office)
Collaborators: Nihon Bunka Radio, Takagi Sebastian
Support: Shinjuku Tourism Promotion Association
Media Partners: Time Out Tokyo, FLIP Japan, NiEW
Project Managers: Honya-shan, Kaede Ebina, Rena Ashibe
PR & Design: Smappa!Group
