Past Special Exhibition 2018

“Craft for All of Us — Selections”
—Highlighting Shiseido’s mission to bring beauty to everyday life—

September 11 (Tue) — November 25 (Sun), 2018

The “Craft for All of Us” exhibitions featured group showings of works by well-known contemporary artisans, among them ceramicists Imaizumi Imaemon XIV (1962— ) and Uchida Koichi (1969— ), glasswork artist Matsushima Iwao (1946— ), and lacquer artists Ogura Norihiko (1958— ) and Konishi Yasuko (1968— ). Once a year these artisans created new works around the theme of “the things we use in everyday life” and exhibited these at the Shiseido Art House, along with representations of situations imagining their everyday use. These exhibitions were yet another extension of Shiseido’s history, since its founding in 1872, of not only creating beautiful, stylish things—from products to packaging to advertising materials—but also of attempting to bring a sense of artistry, from the perspective of a cosmetics company, to all aspects of everyday life.
In that sense, “Craft for All of Us” proposed a beautified way of living that begins with the ordinary objects we find around us and use in our everyday lives.

This exhibition brought together various tools, implements, and art works selected from three years of “Craft for All of Us” to recreate a snapshot of beauty in everyday life, and as such represents a retrospective on the first phase of “Craft for All of Us” exhibitions held from 2015 to 2017.

Vintage Perfume Bottles & Modern Tapestries
— A Diversity of Design —

July 3 (Tue) to September 2 (Sun), 2018

“Vintage Perfume Bottles & Modern Tapestries — A Diversity of Design.” highlighted the unique and highly creative designs found in the many perfume bottles manufactured from the 19th century onward.

This exhibition presents 100 strikingly original pieces spanning about a hundred years from the late 19th century on, including works by Rene Lalique (1860—1945), Julien Viard (1883—1938), a sculptor by trade but also a superbly talented perfume bottle designer from the 1920s, and even Surrealist painter Salvador Dali (1904—1989).

The tapestries section of the exhibition featured domestic Japanese works created during the 1960s and early 1970s. These include pieces commissioned by Shiseido from artisan weavers in Kyoto and other districts singular works of textile art based on original paintings by the likes of Shikanosuke Oka, Seison Maeda, and other leading artists of the day.

Perfume bottles and tapestries are both richly decorative art forms and in that sense have served to bring joy and delight into so many people’s lives and hearts.

Vintage Perfume Bottles & Modern Tapestries
— Focusing on Lalique & Baccarat —

April 10 (Tue) through June 24 (Sun), 2018

This exhibition was featuring glass perfume bottles made in France from the late 19_th century up until World War Two, along with modern tapestries produced in the 1960s and 70s.

The word “tapestry” in textile circles refers to various kinds of figured brocades, generally to be used as decorative wall hangings. The tapestries on display in this exhibition were commissioned by Shiseido from artisans working in art textile studios to depict works by contemporary art world luminaries like Shikanosuke Oka and Seison Maeda.

The perfume bottle exhibition featured works created by France’s renowned artist René Lalique (1860—1945) along with others manufactured by the Baccarat Company, well known for its production of luxurious crystal glass ware.

Although both tapestry and perfume bottles are considered to be industrial products, the examples exhibited here have become valued in time for their superb artistry. We hoped you’ll visit the Shiseido Art House to enjoy this world of decorative arts that have done so much to decorate and enrich people’s lives.