POLA Cultural Research Institute
Pola Cultural Research Institute relocates to Minami Aoyama; “Cosmetic Culture Gallery” opens in May
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The Pola Culture Research Institute, which conducts research activities related to makeup culture at Pola Orbis Holdings Co., Ltd. (Headquarters: Chuo-ku, Tokyo, President: Kiichi Yokote), has relocated to Minami-Aoyama, Minato-ku, Tokyo, and opened the new “Cosmetic Culture Gallery.” We will open.
[Image 1: https://prtimes.jp/i/46215/20/resize/d46215-20-c6f4837ab2daa6cb76d5-0.jpg&s3=46215-20-664a9eae665120690f4a5d0f06658554-761×507.jpg] The Pola Cultural Research Institute, established in 1976 for the purpose of academic exploration of makeup culture, has been working on collecting, preserving, researching, and disseminating materials related to makeup culture. The Cosmetic Culture Gallery, which was newly established upon the relocation, will introduce the cultural assets and knowledge gained through research that it has collected to date through exhibits, books, workshops, and more. We will also continue the reference service that we have been providing online and in real life, and will respond to questions and consultations related to makeup culture from society, whether individuals, companies, or organizations.
Furthermore, on April 16th, we released the “Digital Museum” on our official website. The exhibitions that have been planned and held for more than 40 years since its establishment are digitally reproduced, and about 1,000 items and painting materials are displayed. We will communicate the joy of makeup culture to society through both digital sites that can be accessed from all over the world and the real space of the “Makeup Culture Gallery” and deepen our interactions with local communities.
Overview of “Cosmetic Culture Gallery”
[Image 2: https://prtimes.jp/i/46215/20/resize/d46215-20-3732dcd74567327ef4d2-0.jpg&s3=46215-20-177246426b4f1f274815a10c04ecf639-546×365.jpg] We will introduce the collection and research findings we have accumulated from the perspective of “beauty, makeup, and beauty” in two areas: Art and Books. The Art corner will display cosmetics tools, accessories, ukiyo-e prints, fashion plates, etc., while the Books corner will display recommended books based on themes and
associations. The opening project is “The Aesthetics of Beginnings” and will unravel various “beginnings”. The first period, from May 16th to August 30th, will have the theme of “The Beginning of Cosmetic Culture Research,” and will exhibit wedding cosmetics and ukiyo-e prints collected during the founding period of our institute.
[Image 3: https://prtimes.jp/i/46215/20/resize/d46215-20-ecc326d5ebe8aa2749da-0.jpg&s3=46215-20-e21548b50ef7601ee48585610f7feae4-545×364.jpg] The gallery is open two days a week, with reservation-only programs such as gallery talks, workshops, and reference sessions held on Thursdays, and Fridays are free open days with no reservations required.
■POLA Cultural Research Institute “Cosmetic Culture Gallery” Address: 1F Pola Aoyama Building, 2-5-17 Minami Aoyama, Minato-ku, Tokyo Opening date: Thursday, May 16, 2024
Opening days: Thursdays and Fridays (closed on holidays and New Year’s holidays) *Reservation required on Thursdays
Opening hours: 11:00-17:00 (last entry until 16:30)
Fee: Free
Official website https://www.cosmetic-culture.po-holdings.co.jp *Site renewed from Friday, May 10th
“Cosmetic Culture Gallery” opening commemorative event held for the general public
To commemorate the opening of the “Cosmetic Culture Gallery,” we will hold a talk event “Cosmetic Culture from the Image of Women.” While reading the images of women depicted in ukiyo-e and other works, we will introduce the changes in makeup behavior, makeup views, and aesthetic sense, and consider the meaning of makeup today as seen from there. After the talk, there will also be an exhibition of hairstyle models and a hands-on experience using white powder from the Edo period.
Event name: Talk event “Cosmetic culture understood from the image of women” Date and time Saturday, June 22, 2024 14:00-15:00 (doors open and reception starts at 13:30)
Location: P.O.Minamiaoyama Hall, B1F, Pola Aoyama Building, 2-5-17 Minamiaoyama, Minato-ku, Tokyo
Capacity: 100 people *Advance application required, first come first served How to apply: Reservations will be accepted on the official website (https://www.cosmetic-culture.po-holdings.co.jp) from Friday, May 10th.
About the Digital Museum
Prior to opening the Cosmetic Culture Gallery, we launched a digital museum in April 2024. We will rebuild the exhibitions that we have planned and held over the years since our establishment, and in 2024 we will open 10 special exhibitions and a collection of approximately 1,000 items. You can get a panoramic view of a diverse world, including makeup tools from the late Edo period, combs from around the world, ukiyo-e prints depicting makeup scenes, and fashion plates. In addition, we have collected and preserved many nomadic ornaments that tend to be lost, and are exhibiting a large number of valuable Turkmen accessories.
➤Digital Museum
https://www.cosmetic-culture.po-holdings.co.jp/digitalmuseum What is Pola Cultural Research Institute?
It was established on May 15, 1976 with the purpose of academically exploring makeup. Since then, we have been working to collect, preserve, research and disseminate cosmetics culture, viewing it as an important part of culture that has been cultivated through people’s daily activities. It has a collection of approximately 6,500 items from ancient times to the present day, including cosmetic tools, accessories, painting materials, and literature, and also has materials that are highly rare around the world, such as “Turkmen accessories” and the “Cox Collection.” In the field of modern research, we have been conducting and publishing surveys on makeup and aesthetic sense since 1978, and since 2007 we have deposited some of the data in the University of Tokyo SSJ Data Archive. We also cooperate with exhibitions at museums in Japan and abroad, and in 2020 we co-hosted the “Secrets of Beauty” exhibition with the Japanese Cultural Institute in Paris.
Reference release
Pola Cultural Research Institute receives an award from the Institute of Social Science, the University of Tokyo for contributing by depositing research data for academic research (February 17, 2021) https://www.cosmetic-culture.po-holdings.co.jp/newsrelease/pdf/20210217.pdf The first exhibition in France to comprehensively introduce the makeup customs of the Edo period, “Secrets of Beauty,” will be held in Paris (October 2, 2020)
https://www.po-holdings.co.jp/news/pdf/20201002_csr.pdf
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More details about this release:
https://prtimes.jp/main/html/rd/p/000000020.000046215.html