Pokémon × Kogei: Playful Encounters of Art and Japanese Craft exhibit opens at Tokyo's Azabudai Hills Gallery on November 1st, featuring new merch

The Pokémon × Kogei: Playful Encounters of Art and Japanese Craft exhibit, featuring handcrafted works of Pokémon by 20 different Japanese artists, will be opening for another run from November 1st, this time at the Azabudai Hills Gallery in Tokyo. This latest installment, which will be open until February 2nd, 2025, will include additional works by several artists, and also talk events, workshops, a collaboration café, and new merchandise.

This exhibition was originally held at the National Crafts Museum in Ishikawa, Japan, between March and June 2023, and traveled overseas to JAPAN HOUSE Los Angeles between July 2023 and January 2024. The exhibition returned to Japan with runs at the Sagawa Art Museum in Shiga Prefecture from March to June this year, and is currently hosted at the MOA Museum of Art in Shizuoka Prefecture until September 9th. A further three venues across are intended to host the exhibition during 2025, including the Matsuzakaya Art Gallery in Nagoya from April 26th to July 15th; the Hachinohe Art Museum in Aomori prefecture from June 28th to August 31st; and the Nagasaki Museum of History and Culture from September 12th to November 30th.

This exhibition is a celebration of traditional Japanese crafts is divided into three parts. The first part features Pokémon in unexpected shapes and forms with materials such as metal, earth and wood. The second part focuses on the story of Pokémon, with abstract artworks telling the story of a trainer's journey in raising, evolving and trading. The third part incorporates Pokémon in daily life appliances, such as vases, accessories and tableware. This latest installment of the exhibition includes both returning works from previous installments, and new works, bringing the total of works on display to approximately 80. As of writing, these new works have not yet been revealed, though it is expected that promotional images will be released ahead of the opening of the exhibition.

The twenty artists to be featured in this exposition run the gamut from young rising stars to living national treasures. These include Kohsho Ikeda, Kazumi Ikemoto, Kanma Imai, Kasumi Ueha, Morihito Katsura, Takuro Kuwata, Yasuyoshi Komiya, Eiichi Shiroma, Reiko Sudo, Yoshiaki Taguchi, Nobuyuki Tanaka, Yuki Tsuboshima, Hiroki Shinzane, Shigeki Hayashi, Yuki Hayama, Toru Fukuda, Yoshiko Masumoto, Saori Mizuhashi, Haruho Mitsuda and Yasuichiro Yoshida.

Tickets for this exposition will be available at the door, at the following prices:

• General admissions: ¥1,600 (~$9.75 USD)
• Technical School and University Students: ¥1,400 (~$9.12 USD)
• High School and Middle School Students: ¥1,100 (~$7.17 USD)
• Children from 4 years old through to Primary School Students: ¥400 (~$2.61 USD)

Pre-purchase tickets will be available from October 1st, at 12:00pm (JST), at a ¥100 discount. The sales period for these pre-purchase tickets will close on October 31st, at 23:59pm (JST).

In addition to the regular ticket sales, a selection of special tickets will also be made available ahead of the exhibition, going on sale from September 3rd, at 12:00pm (JST). Each of these tickets includes general admission, as well as some bonus merchandise which will not be available at the exhibition store, and is exclusive to purchasers of the special ticket.

• Special Ticket 1: ¥4,900 (~$31.81 USD) — Includes a porcelain cup with a sparkling silver and black pattern and the Pokémon x Crafts Exhibition logo, a postcard and a shopping bag.
• Special Ticket 2: ¥3,900 (~$25.32 USD) — Includes a porcelain cup printed with a sparkling gold and white pattern with the Pokémon x Crafts Exhibition logo.
• Special Ticket 3: ¥1,500 (~$9.75 USD) — Includes a special postcard printed with the Pokémon x Crafts Exhibition logo in glittering gold foil.

A special Premium Pass costing ¥7,000 (~$45.45 USD) will also be available for those who wish to visit the exposition as many times as possible during the exhibition period. Premium Pass holders will be able to enter the exhibition as many times they'd like without a reservation, regardless of weekday or weekend, as long as the museum is open to the general public. Pass holders will also be able to be accompanied by one person for free for each visit. Sales for this Premium Pass will begin on September 3rd, at 12:00pm (JST), as the same price as the other special tickets.

Special Ticket Merchandise Gallery
Special Ticket 1:

Silver and Black Porcelain Cup	Postcard	Shopping Bag

Special Tickets 2 and 3

Gold and White Porcelain Cup	Postcard