Pokémon Meets Japanese Traditional Crafts in Hiroshima

Pokemon Characters are corraborate with Japanese crafts.

I recently visited the exhibition featuring Pokémon and Japanese traditional crafts at the Hiroshima Prefectural Art Museum.

Pokémon was actually created after my childhood, so unlike many people around the world, I didn't grow up with Pikachu and the other characters. My only real experience with Pokémon was playing Pokémon GO for a short time about ten years ago.

Still, I was curious to see the exhibition — and I came away enjoying it much more than I had expected.

Pokémon Through the Eyes of Japanese Craftspeople

Brochure for Pokemon and Japanese Craft exibition

What interested me most was not simply seeing familiar Pokémon characters represented as works of art.

The exhibition brings together a variety of traditional Japanese materials, techniques, and forms of craftsmanship, with each artist interpreting the characteristics of different Pokémon in their own way.

Some of the characters were familiar to me. Others I had never seen before.

But that didn't really matter.

Even without much knowledge of Pokémon, I could appreciate how the artists worked with different materials and techniques and incorporated the personality and visual characteristics of each character into their creations.

For me, that was probably the most interesting part of the exhibition: a piece of modern Japanese popular culture meeting much older traditions of Japanese craftsmanship.

Detailed work.

An Idea for Families Visiting Hiroshima

If you're visiting Hiroshima with children — or simply happen to be a Pokémon fan — this could be an interesting addition to your stay.

The exhibition is being held at the Hiroshima Prefectural Art Museum and, according to the current schedule, runs until September 8.

Of course, Hiroshima has its essential historical and cultural sites, but I also enjoy finding temporary exhibitions and local events that give visitors another perspective on the city.

This is one of those occasions where contemporary Japanese culture and traditional craftsmanship come together in an unusual way.

Eevee

Pikachu race curtain

One Important Tip About Tickets

There is one practical point worth knowing before you go.

Tickets for the Pokémon exhibition are not sold at the museum itself.

You need to purchase your ticket separately online.

When you arrive at the museum, staff will ask you to show your online ticket, so have the QR code ready on your phone.

There is also a shop with a variety of Pokémon-related products, including some items that appeared quite distinctive to the exhibition. Photography wasn't permitted inside the shop, so I haven't included photos of those products here, but there were plenty of interesting things to browse.

If Pokémon — or Japanese craftsmanship — is part of your family's interests and you're in Hiroshima before September 8, it may be worth adding to your itinerary.

Sometimes exploring Hiroshima is also about discovering what's happening in the city right now.

Pikachu