Exhibition Outline

In 1934, the region around the Seto Inland Sea (Setonaikai) was one of the first places in Japan to be designated as a “National Park” for its “outstanding natural landscapes that are worthy of representing the geographic features of Japan.” The 90th anniversary of that event is celebrated on March 16, 2024.

Surrounded by the Japanese main islands of Honshu, Shikoku and Kyushu, the Seto Inland Sea is the biggest inland sea in Japan, dotted with more than 700 islands of various sizes. Not limited to the realm of art alone, the unique scenic beauty of these myriad islands, and the ample resources they provide, have greatly affected and enriched our daily life. This exhibition introduces a number of paintings that recount the history of the area, as well as familiar examples items of folk craft and architecture in Setonaikai. We hope that it will be an opportunity for visitors to reflect on the appeal of the Setonaikai region across different fields and eras, and also contemplate on what ”The Sea and I” means for them personally.

For a deeper and rather multifaceted understanding, resources and research results are being shared with the Museum of Ehime History and Culture and the Ehime Prefectural Science Museum, both of which concurrently also show exhibitions related to the Seto Inland Sea/Setonaikai.

 

Dates

February 7 – March 24, 2024 (41 days)

Opening hours: 9:40-18:00 (entry until 17:30)

Closed: February 13, 19, 26, March 5, 11, 18, 25

 

Venue

The Museum of Art, Ehime  

Special Exhibition Gallery 1F

 

Organized by The Museum of Art, Ehime

Co-organized by The Ehime Shimbun Co., Ltd.

Supported by the Agency for Cultural Affairs Government of Japan in the fiscal 2023

In cooperation with the Institute for International Relations, Ehime University, Ehime Prefectural Science Museum, Museum of Ehime History and Culture

 

Admission: General ¥900, Over age 65 ¥800, high school/university students ¥500, elementary/junior high school students ¥300

 

Exhibition program

Prologue: From the Inside Out: The National Park in Paintings

Chapter 1: Viewpoints of Painters Traveling the Seto Inland Sea

Chapter 2: Sunouchi Toru and the Artists of Setonaikai

Chapter 3: Blue Folk Crafts

Chapter 4: Setonaikai Architectural Charter 1979

Epilogue: Setonaikai Today and Tomorrow

 

 

Related programs

Please make your application/reservation by email to bijyutukan@pref.ehime.lg.jp, containing the following information:

– Name (of representative)

– Mobile phone number (or other contact information)

– Number of the event you wish to attend

– Number of participants

 

English interpretation is available for events marked with a star (★). For interpretation services, please contact us up to one week prior to the event.

 

 

Talk sessions / lectures

 

1)

3 Prefectural Museums Lecture Series　

Limited to 60 visitors each (first-come-first-served)

 

In a series of lectures, the Ehime Prefectural Science Museum, the Museum of Ehime History and Culture, and the Museum of Art, Ehime , introduce their respective points of view.

 

Time: 13:30-15:00

Location: Seminar Room

“A Geological View on the Coastline of White Sands and Green Pines” February 25 (Sun)

at the Ehime Prefectural Science Museum

“Setonaikai in the Works of Artists” March 2 (Sat)

Guest: Curator at the Museum of Art, Ehime  

“Traveling in Setonaikai from a Historical Perspective” March 9 (Sat)

Guest: Curator at the Museum of Ehime History and Culture

 

2)

Folk Craft Talk ★

(Exhibition ticket required)　

 

Guests for this talk session are creators of Kurashiki folk craft that is showcased at this exhibition.

 

Time: March 20, 14:00-15:00

Location: Special Exhibition Gallery 1F

Guests: KOTANI Eiji (Kurashiki glass), TAKIYAMA Yuji (Kurashiki dantsu)

 

3)

Setouchi Night Chat ★

Limited to 20 participants, must order 1 drink

 

Come together on a Friday evening and enjoy the Seto Inland Sea from various angles.

 

Time: 18:00-19:00　

Location: Museum Cafe

 

Book/photography edition: March 1 (Fri)　

Guests: OCHI Masanao (Owner of the book & coffee shop “Books on the track”),  MIYAHATA Shuhei (Head of the Setouchi Editorial Institute/Setohen)

 

Design/craft edition: March 22 (Fri)

Guests: INOUE Maki (designer for this exhibition), KADOTA Makiko (owner of the crafts shop ROSA)

 

 

Workshops

 

4)

Draw the Sea from a Line (public creation + workshop) ★　

Reservation required for the workshop only　

 

The illustrator shunshun, one of the artists featured in the exhibition, shows how one single line can develop into a drawing of the sea. Also offered is a workshop where participants draw the sea together with the artist.

 

Times: February 11, 11:00-12:00 (1: public creation) / 13:30-16:00 (2: workshop)

Locations: Entrance Hall (1) / Observation Lobby (2)

Instructor: shunshun (illustrator)

Material costs: ca. ¥2,500 (for workshop participants only, limited to 12 persons age 15 or above, first-come-first-served)

 

5)

Chirimen Monsters in Kenbi

 

Open at any time

 

Find the monsters that hide among the sardines caught in the Seto Inland Sea, enclose them in resin, and take them home!

 

Time: February 17, 13:30-15:00

Location: Entrance Hall

Instructor: Curator at the Ehime Prefectural Science Museum

Material costs: ca. ¥300

 

6)

Indigo Dyeing Workshop ★　

Limited to 10 participants, reservation required

 

Participants in this hands-on indigo dyeing workshop familiarize with a traditional dyeing technique, and dye bags using indigo.

 

Times: February 23, 10:30-11:30 / 14:00-15:00

Location: South Building, Atelier 2

Instructor: Curator at The Museum of Art, Ehime  

Material costs: ca. ¥400

 

7)

3 Prefectural Museums Collaborative Program:

Beach Combing Observation + Workshop

Limited to 10 participants, reservation required (first-come-first-served)

 

Time: February 24, 13:00-16:00　

Locations: Fusokaikan (Iyo City), others (meet and dissolve at the venue)

Material costs: ca. ¥300

 

 

Hands-on events

 

8)

Folk Craft + Architecture Tour ★　

Limited to 20 participants, reservation required (first-come-first-served)

 

Participants in this tour visit the Ehime Folk Crafts Museum and the Saijo Eiko Kyokai (Saijo Glory Church), for a closer look at these two constructions designed by the architect URABE Shizutaro. After a lecture about the buildings’ architectural appeal, attendants are free to view and/or purchase items at the Folk Crafts Museum.

Time: March 23, 13:00-15:00

Locations: Ehime Folk Crafts Museum (Saijo City), others (meet and dissolve at the venue)

Guests: MAGATA Kiyotada (professor emeritus at Ehime University), WADA Koichi ()

Participation fee: ca. ¥500 (includes museum ticket)

 

9)

Setonaikai Quest!

Museum ticket required, open at any time　

 

Equipped with written instructions, participants follow a navigator around the exhibition rooms, to explore the displays and their respective mysteries.

English guidance available on the underlined dates only.

 

Times: March 3, 10, 17, 24 / 10:30-14:30 each

Location: Special Exhibition Gallery 1F

Navigators: Volunteer guides, others

 

 

Other programs during the exhibition period

 

Pop-up store

The crafts shop ROSA, offering a variety of beautiful handicraft items, sets up a satellite shop in the museum’s Entrance Hall for visitors to carefully examine works of Tobe ware and Kurashiki glass among others. 

 

Special dishes

Enjoy meals at the Museum Cafe that are served on special Tobe ware dishes in collaboration with the exhibition.

 

Picture credits

“Sea Routes in the Seto Inland Sea,” Edo Period, The Museum of the Imperial Collections, Sannomaru Shozokan

FUJISHIMA Takeji, “Distant View from Yashima,”1932, Artizon Museum

TANAKA Takeshi, “Elegy,” 1984, Kawasaki City Museum

KOTANI Shinzo, “Kurashiki glass bottle,” 1980s, Ehime Folk Crafts Museum

Saijo Eiko Kyokai (Saijo Glory Church), designed by URABE Shizutaro, 1951 ©MIYAHATA Shuhei