The Japan Society Review
The Japan Society Review is an digital publication covering Japan-related books and films, as well as theatre and stage productions, tv series and exhibitions. Published since 2006, it is released now on a quarterly basis and is available online on our website and printed for members. Its purpose is to inform, entertain and encourage readers to explore the works for themselves.
The Japan Society Review is possible thanks to the work of volunteers who dedicated their time and expertise to help us to promote the learning and understanding of Japanese culture and society.
To become a reviewer, please fill the form here and let us know a little about you, your professional or academic background, your interest, passion or expertise regarding Japan and the type of works you would like to review.
If you have any questions, please contact reviews@japansociety.org.uk.
Events
Exhibition - Hiroshige: Artist of the Open RoadThis exhibition invites us to reconsider Hiroshige not just as a celebrated printmaker, but as an artist who visually constructed ideas of travel, nature, and place — shaping perceptions within Japan and, eventually, abroad. Review by Sanae Inagaki
Events
Exhibition - Michael Kenna: Japan, A Love StoryThis exhibition celebrates half a century of work by renowned British-American photographer Michael Kenna. His in-depth explorations and imagery of Japan since 1987 stand out as perhaps his most distinguished and well-known works. Review by David Tonge
Events
Exhibition - Yoshida: Three Generations of Japanese PrintmakingFeaturing over 75 exquisite prints, this exhibition journeys from the rich, nostalgic landscapes of the prolific artist and patriarch of the family, Hiroshi to the abstract work of the family’s later and current generations. Review by David Tonge
Events
Exhibition - Design Discoveries: Towards a Design Museum JapanFor this exhibition, prominent Japanese creators were asked the simple question – what does design mean to you? In responding they have chosen artifacts which resonate with them and their practice and have explained what makes them unique to the prefecture and worthy of inclusion in Design Museum Japan. Review by David Tonge
Events
Exhibition - The Kimono in Print: 300 Years of Japanese DesignThis exhibition focuses primarily on how kimonos reflected major socio-economic shifts in the Edo period (1603-1868), a time which witnessed a rapidly changing consumerist culture in Japan. Review by Fiona Collins
Events
Exhibition - Kimono: Kyoto to CatwalkA major new exhibition at London’s Victoria and Albert Museum celebrates the kimono’s elegant history. It also displays its dynamic renaissance, through works by modern designers, such Alexander McQueen, John Gallianio and Rei Kawakubo. Review by Duncan Bartlett
Events
The Citi Exhibition Manga マンガAt the British Museum Manga is a visual narrative art form that has become a multimedia global phenomenon, telling stories with themes from gender to adventure, in real or imagined worlds. Review by Malene Wagner
Events
An Interview with filmmaker and writer Kawamura GenkiMorgane Chinal-Dargent interviews Kawamura Genki, the talented writer behind If Cats Disappeared From The World and Japan’s leading producer behind Your Name on being a storyteller and seeking your own story. Interview by Morgane Chinal-Dargent
Events
ShapeshifterBy Yamashiro Chikako The forced cohabitation with American forces, very unwelcomed by the Okinawans, is the main preoccupation of Yamashiro Chikako’s work, on show under the title of Shapeshifter at White Rainbow’s non-profit [...] Review by Silvia Caso
Events
Japanese TaikoPerformed by Joji Hirota & The London Taiko Drummers Going by the music displayed here, the years of discipline have definitely paid off. Hirota and his team capture a real depth of sound that, for all its natural percussiveness, never feels like it’s pounding its way [...] Review by Laurence Green