The "2nd Japan Avant-Garde Poster Fair: The Golden Age of Showa Graphics - From Theater to Film to Commercials" will be held at Bunkamura Gallery 8/ (Shibuya Hikarie 8F) from Friday, April 25th to Sunday, May 11th, 2025.

This project is the second installment of the "Japan Avant-Garde Poster Fair" which was well received last year. Posters and flyers that colored the "Showa culture" that flourished during the high economic growth period of the 1960s and 1970s will be exhibited and sold. While the previous fair was centered on underground theater posters, this time it will cover a wide range of subjects including movies, art exhibitions, and even commercials, allowing you to experience the golden age of Showa graphic design.

The exhibition features works by some of Japan's leading artists, including Akiyoshi Uno, Kuniyoshi Kaneko, Tadanori Yokoo, and Kiyoshi Awazu. In particular, the poster for the 1969 Theatrical Experimental Laboratory Tenjo Sajiki's "Inugami" (Frankfurt performance version) (by Kiyoshi Awazu) is a must-see piece that symbolizes the enthusiasm for underground theater at the time.

In commemoration of the 90th anniversary of the birth of Shuji Terayama this year, a special corner will be set up selling related books and goods. This will be a rare opportunity to follow in the footsteps of Terayama, who was known as a genius of underground theater.

A special talk between Kunihiko Ikuhara and Hiroyuki Sasame

A talk event related to the exhibition will also be held on Saturday, April 26th. The speakers will be animation director Kunihiko Ikuhara and Hiroyuki Sasame, president of Poster Harris Company, which distributes theater and movie posters. Ikuhara, who has produced works heavily influenced by Shuji Terayama, and Sasame, who has been involved in Terayama's underground theater, will talk at length about the appeal of Showa-era avant-garde culture and its influence on the present day, while also explaining the works on display.

In an age where advertising media has been digitized and information is updated instantly, Showa-era posters and flyers can be said to be a valuable heritage that vividly conveys the atmosphere and passion of the time. Why not experience the strength of graphic design at that time and the transition of the times through this exhibition?

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