Special Exhibitions

The Ghibli Museum, Mitaka's Saturn Theater screens two short animations based on the original works by Rieko Nakagawa and illustrated by Yuriko Yamawaki. The first one is based on the story, "Whale Hunting", from the children's book "No-No Nursery School", and another is based on the picture book "Treasure Hunting". Moreover, the pair's picture book "The Sky Blue Seed" was also adapted into three 30-second episodes, totaling 90 seconds of animation by Studio Ghibli. These three stories were the works that made director Hayao Miyazaki think, "I absolutely want to turn them into animation."

This special exhibition recreates the studio of the illustrator Yuriko Yamawaki. Her studio tells a story of an artist's career that began in high school, and is filled with objects that reflect her personality. How did she express the author's imaginary worlds in her art? We will dive into the secret by examining the details of her room.

The way that Yamawaki poured her overflowing love for children into her work parallels Studio Ghibli's approach to filmmaking. Sisters Rieko Nakagawa and Yuriko Yamawaki, who made a striking debut with "No-No Nursery School" and "Guri and Gura", infused new life into a stagnant postwar world of children's books, just as directors Isao Takahata and Hayao Miyazaki blew a hot wind into the world of Japanese animation.

Full of high ideals, the work of Yuriko Yamawaki has given many gifts to the world. The Ghibli Museum will showcase them in its original way.
We hope you will look forward to it.

The special exhibition, "The Boy and the Heron Part 3: Background Art", begins on November 23.

"Background Art" is the finale of a three-part exhibition featuring the hand-drawn drawings created for the feature-length animated film "The Boy and the Heron."

If it is the animation (drawing) that brings the characters to life, then it is the background art that creates the world in which the characters live. After the layout of each scene is completed, background art is drawn as the base material for setting up the look on screen.

In recent years, the use of digital tools has also increased in drawing background art. However, hand painting on paper cannot be drawn identically twice. Furthermore, while pencil drawings can be corrected with an eraser, it is not easy to erase a ground coat of paint after it has been applied. When you think about this, you realize how unique background art is in the animation process.

Director Hayao Miyazaki has always said.", The quality of a film is decided by the background arts."
Beautiful, rich screens cannot be created without the power of background art.

The light, shadows, and rich hues of these worlds are created by the interplay of hand work, paper, paint and water. That is the world brought to life by hand-drawn background art.

The background art of "The Boy and the Heron" was drawn by a relatively small number of art staff. Please take a look at the fruits of their skills and artistry.

≪Notice of Extension of Part 3 Exhibition Period≫
Part 3 of this exhibition, "Background Art," will be extended from the initially planned 6-months to 1 year, and some of the background art will be replaced in the first and second halves of the exhibition.

Please take this opportunity to enjoy the various artworks of "The Boy and the Heron" in Ghibli Museum, Mitaka.