The Shinjuku Kabukicho Shunga Exhibition has been extended until October 5th! The extended period is a special week! Events will be held every day!
Smappa!Group Press release: September 24, 2025 To Members of the Press The Shinjuku Kabukicho Shunga Exhibition has been extended until October 5th! The extended period is a special week! Events will be held every day!
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https://prcdn.freetls.fastly.net/release_image/42926/84/42926-84-5b467d5a25a37f9145097be7ee63ba16-1920×1080.jpg We’ve prepared a variety of gallery tours and comment sessions that will bring together laughter, learning, and community. We look forward to your participation. Date Event name Time Participation fee 10/1 (Wed) A Shunga Swamp Tour with Shunga Girl 1. 19:00-20:30 1000 yen 10/2 (Thu) A Shunga Swamp Tour with Shunga-ru 2. 19:00-20:30 1000 yen 10/3 (Fri) Shinjuku Kabukicho Shunga Exhibition Radio Station “Wa” Offline Tour Impressions Beautiful and silly?! Let’s all read shunga together! Tour 19:00-20:30 1000 yen 10/4 (Sat) Maki Tezuka’s “I Think” Shunga Commentary Tour Final 19:00-20:30 Free October 1st (Wed) & October 2nd (Thu) Shunga Tour 1. & 2. with Shunga-ru
https://prcdn.freetls.fastly.net/release_image/42926/84/42926-84-e53750c9f7cfa53d3a22cbac9b403d4a-3900×2194.jpg Since becoming fascinated with shunga after encountering Katsushika Hokusai’s “The Octopus and the Diver,” shunga researcher Shunga-ru has been spreading the enjoyment and depth of shunga through social media, her books, and talk events. The Shinjuku Kabukicho Shunga Exhibition will be hosting a special event featuring Shunga-ru. With Shunga-ru’s guidance, attendees will learn how to view and interpret shunga while viewing the exhibition, and then join in the program to share their impressions. By experiencing the depth of shunga and sharing new insights, your enjoyment will expand even further. Participation Fee: 1,000 yen *Separate ticket purchase for the Shunga Exhibition required For reservations and details, please visit:
https://www.smappa.net/shunga/event/251001.html 10/3 (Fri) Shinjuku Kabukicho Shunga Exhibition Radio Station “Wa” Offline Meet-Up Tour Impressions Session
https://prcdn.freetls.fastly.net/release_image/42926/84/42926-84-cedaf804cacf6332ae46d90db080c0d1-2048×1263.jpg “Shinjuku Kabukicho Shunga Exhibition Radio Station ‘Wa’ – Connecting to the World of Shunga with Your Ears” is a radio program launched to help you enjoy the Shinjuku Kabukicho Shunga Exhibition even more. With a focus on interpreting shunga, the program has covered a variety of topics, including Edo culture, ukiyo-e, and Tsutaya Juzaburo. We are pleased to announce the holding of an offline event for the program. The three guides, Sebastian Takagi (Secretary-General of the World BF Value Introduction Promotion Committee), Maki Tezuka, and Honya-shan, will lead a tour of the exhibition and a post-show discussion. Inside the exhibition room, Sebastian Takagi will teach participants how to read shunga while they view the actual works. Afterwards, all participants will gather together to share their impressions. Participation Fee: 1,000 yen *Separate ticket purchase for the Shunga Exhibition required For reservations and details, please visit: https://www.smappa.net/shunga/event/251003.html 10/4 (Sat) Maki Tezuka’s “I Think” Shunga Commentary Tour Final Image
URL: https://prcdn.freetls.fastly.net/release_image/42926/84/42926-84-e012973259e483ab7aa2d55b4b01d5e7-1920×1080.jpg Kabukicho and shunga—two worlds that embody the fascination and loveliness of human nature—are somehow connected. Maki Tezuka, who continues to work and work in Kabukicho, discovered this affinity and decided to hold a shunga exhibition. Since then, I have deepened my knowledge of shunga, ukiyo-e, and Edo culture, and frequently conducted the “I Think Shunga Tour,” a guided tour from my own perspective. We are pleased to announce the final tour of this series, marking the end of the Shinjuku Kabukicho Shunga Exhibition. “Is there such a way to look at it?” “Is such an interpretation even
permissible?” Experience Tezuka’s free-flowing narrative is sure to inspire new insights and perspectives on shunga. At the end of the tour, all participants will have the opportunity to share their impressions and create a sense of unity. Come and enjoy the shunga freely, laughing together. Participation Fee: Free *Separate ticket purchase for the Shunga Exhibition required For reservations and details, please visit: https://www.smappa.net/shunga/event/251004.html There are lots of events happening throughout September! Date Event name Time Participation fee 9/24(Wed) Chat-style art appreciation with a blind communicator 1. 1. 17:30 2. 19:30 60 minutes each Free 9/25(Thu) Let’s read the lines and lyrics of Noriko Itasaka’s shunga! 19:00-20:30 1000 yen 9/26 (Fri) Suribachi Walking Tour of Kabukicho’s “Izumi” and Shunga 16:00-19:30 3000 yen Sat, September 27th Japanese Mythology and Shunga Tour with Noh Actor Noboru Yasuda 19:00-20:30 1000 yen 9/29 (Mon) Chat-Based Art Appreciation with a Blind Communicator 2. 1.17:302.19:30 60 minutes each time Free 9/30 (Tue) Let’s chat about shunga while drinking tea #TeaDabeza 19:00-20:30 Advance 1000 yen 1500 yen on the day September 24th (Wed) & 29th (Mon) – Art Appreciation with a Blind Communicator, Part 1 & 2
https://prcdn.freetls.fastly.net/release_image/42926/84/42926-84-a125a9c41b221ce1e982ed13ff9fba9a-2500×1542.jpg Feel and speak. A casual conversation-style art appreciation program with a blind communicator As a special event for the Shinjuku Kabukicho Shunga Exhibition, we will be holding a casual
conversation-style art appreciation program. This is an experiential event featuring a blind communicator as a guest, connecting the “visible world” and the “invisible world” while enjoying art interactively. Shunga is an art form that humorously depicts bodies and relationships while affirming human desires and everyday life. Guests’ perspectives, which do not rely on sight but rather perceive the artworks and space through touch, hearing, and words, are intertwined with each participant’s own observations and small differences. By sharing these insights and small differences in words, participants can discover new charms in art through a casual, non-serious way of enjoying the exhibition, which is in keeping with that spirit. By freely discussing “What do you see?” and “What does it look like?”, the humanity hidden deep within shunga and a timeless feeling emerge. Look, laugh, and talk—a new appreciation experience unique to the Shunga Exhibition may be born. Planning: HERALBONY Co., Ltd. Participation Fee: Free *Separate ticket purchase for the Shunga Exhibition required For reservations and details, please visit: https://www.smappa.net/shunga/event/250924.html 9/25 (Thu) Let’s read the lines and lyrics of shunga with Noriko Itasaka!
https://prcdn.freetls.fastly.net/release_image/42926/84/42926-84-3d15859aa2f9b34d0656c2b0566cfd36-2048×1263.jpg The words depicted in shunga are interspersed with numerous elements that offer a deeper understanding of the work, such as dialogue between men and women, animal murmurs, and explanatory notes and inscriptions. However, much of this is written in variant kana, making it difficult for modern readers to decipher. “I wonder what it says?” “It would be even more fun if I could read it!” For those of you who feel this way, the Shinjuku Kabukicho Shunga Exhibition will be hosting a special event featuring Kyokutei Bakin researcher Noriko Itasaka, where you can actually read the words written on the shunga and appreciate the exhibited works. In the second half of the event, participants will share their impressions and try their hand at reading the hentaigana. Participation Fee: 1,000 yen *Separate ticket purchase for the Shunga Exhibition required For reservations and details, please visit: https://www.smappa.net/shunga/event/250925.html 9/26 (Fri) Kabukicho “Izumi” and Shunga Walking Tour
https://prcdn.freetls.fastly.net/release_image/42926/84/42926-84-d4109898c6903174862cc49ab40e6456-3900×2194.jpg Join Dr. Norihisa Minagawa, president of the Tokyo Suribachi Society, and his beautiful assistant, Vivienne Sato, on a fun tour of Kabukicho’s hidden, uneven terrain and its lesser-known “springs”! Tracing the roots of the springs of the past may reveal how the culture of modern Kabukicho has been shaped. Are topography and culture closely connected?! After a pleasantly tiring stroll, check out the Shinjuku Kabukicho Shunga Exhibition. You’re sure to discover something new after a stroll. There will also be a mini talk and lecture by Minagawa at the end. Participation Fee: 3,000 yen *Separate ticket purchase for the Shunga Exhibition required For reservations and details, please visit:
https://www.smappa.net/shunga/event/250806.html September 27th (Sat) Japanese Mythology and Shunga Tour with Noh Actor Noboru Yasuda
https://prcdn.freetls.fastly.net/release_image/42926/84/42926-84-54307ebed423acfdf899cc90115a5ef7-2500×1542.jpg “Japanese eroticism was cheerful.” So says Noh actor Noboru Yasuda. These words of support for the exhibition are inspired by the ancient mythological figures Izanagi and Izanami, and Ame-no-Uzume-no-Mikoto. Perhaps by coincidence, or perhaps by fate, the Shinjuku Kabukicho Shunga Exhibition features Izanagi and Izanami depicted on the frontispiece of Yanagawa Shigenobu’s “Amano Ukihashi” as an
introductory piece. We are pleased to present a special exhibition featuring Noboru Yasuda, unraveling the “brightness of Japanese eroticism” through both mythology and shunga. Through the appreciation of shunga, we will explore the meaning of eros in Japanese culture and consider the significance of the Noh stage being used for the exhibition. Perhaps we will see overlapping images of mythological goddesses. Participation Fee: 1,000 yen *Separate ticket purchase for the Shunga Exhibition required For reservations and details, please visit: https://www.smappa.net/shunga/event/250927.html 9/30 (Tue) Let’s chat about shunga over tea #ChaDabeza
https://prcdn.freetls.fastly.net/release_image/42926/84/42926-84-13b30c205c355d36e8442cfb1819ebca-3900×2194.jpg “I want to talk about Shunga, but it’s hard to say because I’m afraid people will misunderstand me and think, ‘It’s an erotic book (lol).'” Have you ever had that experience? At the Shinjuku Kabukicho Shunga Exhibition, we will hold a tea party as a place to casually discuss shunga. No complicated knowledge required. This is a place where participants can loosely share what they felt while looking at the exhibition. Exhibition staff will also be in attendance to frankly discuss their impressions of shunga. In addition, Kyuyu-ryu Chado, which goes to see shunga paintings from all over the country as a hobby and is the official media partner of the Shinjuku Kabukicho Shunga Exhibition, will provide sweets and matcha tea. You can become familiar with the world of shunga while enjoying a cup of tea. Participation fee: 1000 yen in advance / 1500 yen on the day * Separate ticket purchase for the shunga exhibition is required For reservations and details, click here:
https://www.smappa.net/shunga/event/250930.html
基本情報 Exhibition name:Shinjuku Kabukicho Shunga Exhibition – A moment of “wa” spun through culture. Period: July 26, 2025 (Sat) – October 5, 2025 (Sun) Closed: None Hours: 11:00 – 21:00 / Saturdays, Sundays and holidays: 10:00 – 21:00 *Admission is until 30 minutes before closing time Venue: Shinjuku Kabukicho Noh Stage Ticket: General 2200 yen *One person with a disability certificate and their caregiver will be admitted free of charge *This exhibition requires advance reservations (scheduled date and time tickets). Please purchase a “Date and Time Ticket” from the online site. *If there is space in the designated date and time slot on the day, you can enter without making a reservation in advance. *This ticket allows you to see the Shinjuku Kabukicho Noh Stage 2nd venue. *Reception is at Shinjuku Kabukicho Noh Stage. *Re-entry is possible only on the day of your visit. Date and time tickets can be purchased at ArtSticker or Asoview.
チケットページ：https://www.smappa.net/shunga/ticket.html Access: Lions Plaza Shinjuku, 2-9-18 Kabukicho, Shinjuku-ku, Tokyo 2nd floor 3-minute walk from the E1 exit of Shinjuku-sanchome Station on the Tokyo Metro Marunouchi Line, Fukutoshin Line, and Toei Shinjuku Line, 8-minute walk from the north exit of Seibu-Shinjuku Station on the
Seibu-Shinjuku Line — 2nd venue goods shop Access: 9th floor, Kabuki Social Building, 1-2-15 Kabukicho, Shinjuku-ku, Tokyo [Special Notes] ⚫︎No entry allowed for those under 18 years old *Age
verification is required when purchasing tickets. We may also ask you to present identification documents (My Number Card, driver’s license, health insurance card, etc.) when visiting the venue. Thank you for your understanding. 公式HP：https://www.smappa.net/shunga/
公式X：https://x.com/KabukichoShunga
公式Instagram：https://www.instagram.com/shunga_kabukicho/
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(Representative of Urakami Sokyudo, Executive Director of the International Ukiyo-e Society) Planning: Maki Tezuka (Representative of Smappa! Group) Art direction/Venue composition: Yasutaka Hayashi (Chim↑Pom from Smappa!Group) Venue design: Takaaki Mitsui Sound composition: Manabu Uchida (Compose/Karesansui Surrounding), Umeo Saito (Sound Design/FLEXTONE) Planning cooperation: Yuko Yamamoto (ANOMALY), Koichi Morota (Morota Office), Aiyama Hanako (OFFICE-Hai) Sponsored by: West River Co., Ltd., Ernest Nurturing Foundation, Pipi-chan Farm, TST Entertainment Co., Ltd. Cooperation: Japan Cultural Radio, Sebastian Takagi, The Chain Museum Co., Ltd., “Emotions, Expressions, Pathos: About Godard’s Book of Images” Exhibition, Blue Man Group Japan Tour 2025 Sponsored by: Shinjuku Tourism Promotion Association Media partners: Time Out Tokyo, FLIP Japan, Yuyuu Chado, NiEW, JPH/Metropolis Project Manager: Honya Shan, Rena Ashibe, Kaede Ebina (Smappa! Group) Advisor: Mami Kisaragi (enchanting singer), Aki Tanaka PR・デザイン：Smappa!Group
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