For a limited time only, one of the most famous works in Japanese art history will be on display in Kabukicho: Katsushika Hokusai’s celebrated shunga masterpiece Tako to Ama (The Dream of the Fisherman’s Wife) from the series “Kinoe no Komatsu” (“Pine Seedlings on the First Rat Day”).
Originally published in 1814, the work is among Hokusai’s most iconic and widely discussed images. Bold, surreal and unmistakably expressive, it remains a defining example of shunga, or erotic ukiyo-e.
The piece will be on view for a limited time within the larger exhibition, “A Contest of Allure: Hokusai and Eisen — Kabukicho in Full Bloom,” which brings together around 100 works from the collection of Uragami Sokyudo director Mitsuru Uragami. While the exhibition explores the contrasting styles of Hokusai and Keisai Eisen, this rare display offers a chance to experience one of Hokusai’s most celebrated works up close.
Held at the Shinjuku Kabukicho Noh Stage and BOND (a former host club where the official gift shop Kabukicho Information Center is located), the exhibition situates Edo-period shunga within the contemporary setting of Shinjuku Kabukicho.
The artwork will be on display for two periods only:
- Period 1: April 4 – April 12
- Period 2: May 1 – May 10
