Johan Persson
Using a revolving stage and moving doors, the play perfectly captures a sense of awe and fantasy in this tale about environmental responsibility and the dangers of overconsumption.
Hideko Takamine as Carmen in Carmen Comes Home (1951).
Shochiku Ofuna Studio/Wiki Commons
One hundred years after her birth, Hideko Takamine’s films deserve to be more widely seen outside Japan
Actress Anna Sawai, who plays Mariko in FX’s ‘Shōgun,’ attends the Los Angeles premiere of the series on Feb. 13, 2024.
Matt Winkelmeyer/Getty Images
Compared to its 1980 predecessor, the new FX series presents a more authentic portrayal of early modern Japan.
A perfectly imperfect tea bowl.
Zen Rial/Moment via Getty Images
‘Wabi’ and ‘sabi’ are Japanese words with long histories, but they are rarely used together in the way Western designers have come to use the term.
An installation in the Cute exhibition at Somerset House.
David Parry
The show is divided into sections which all valiantly attempt to define “cute”. But the word is resistant to definition.
Dracula in the Netflix series Castlevania.
Netflix
Christopher Lee’s Dracula remains was one of the game’s biggest early influences.
Shutterstock
When and where the ceramic cats began to be sold remains a mystery, but by the late Edo period they found appeal with urban consumers.
Rainbow ears, but is Japan’s parliament listening?
Lucas Calloch/@dreiimos/Unsplash
Japan has a rich queer history and is seeing societal changes in favor of greater LGBTQ recognition. That said, national politicians have yet to catch up.
Album/Alamy
The late writer never shied away from hard topics, breaking down walls of silence around topics like disability and rurality in post-war Japan.
Auad/Alamy
An uncompromising writer who wrote about the dark and light of postwar Japan
Pikachu as depicted in Pokemon Master Journeys (2021).
The Pokémon Company
Ash Ketchum is retiring from the Pokémon franchise, but this doesn’t spell the end of Pikachu.
Marco Montalti/Shutterstock
A break or moment of failure can be an opportunity to create something new and beautiful.
Monsters and spirits –including ‘tsukumogami,’ which are made of everyday objects – in the ‘Hyakki-Yagyō-Emaki’ scroll, painted between the 14th and 16th centuries.
Wikimedia Commons
Shinto and Buddhist ideas about interconnectedness have deeply influenced Japan, shaping centuries-old rituals and stories whose impact continues today.
Caroline Blumberg/EPA
The pioneering Japanese designer leaves behind a legacy of innovative fashion design.
AP Photo/Remy de la Mauviniere
Issey Miyake’s clothing is both theatrical and practical. The Japanese designer has died aged 84.
The ‘bad’ Yakuza boss, Tozawa in the series Tokyo Vice.
James Lisle/HBO Max
The show is an accurate representation of how the yakuza see themselves and their culture.
Franzi/Shutterstock
Wellbeing is not just an individual thing, it plays out in relationships with people and animals and even plants and our environment.
Photo courtesy of Katsura Niyō
Only 7% of rakugo artists are female, but Katsura Niyō just won one of Japan’s highest honours for emerging rakugo artists.
‘Underdog’: Takaichi Sanae has announced her bid for the presidency of the LDP, which could land her the prime ministership.
EPA-EFE/ Kimimasa Mayama
Japan has a very poor record on promoting gender equality – and it’s political system is no exception.
Male-dominated: Japan’s royal family greet well-wishers for the new year in 2020.
EPA-EFE/ Franck Robichon
There have been eight women who ruled as empress, but Japanese culture has always prioritised maleness.