What meanings does the word “nostalgia” have? Nostalgia is what we feel when recalling things now lost or places and times we can never revisit. We may also get a feeling of wistfulness, similar to nostalgia, when looking at a photo or painting of a scene that is new to us.
Through paintings, prints, photographs, and drawings held in the collections of Tokyo Metropolitan museums and administrated by the Tokyo Metropolitan Collection, this exhibition traces Japan’s changing landscapes from the early 20th century to the present, in order to ponder the character of the “nostalgia” people have discovered in them.
The nostalgia manifest in works by artists such as Kawase Hasui and Domon Ken is liable to touch anyone, even if the times they portray differ entirely. The “nostalgia” of Taisho- and early Showa-era scenes, lost in Japan’s rush to modernize, and the “nostalgia” of the American culture sweeping the nation after the war can touch us in same way as the “nostalgia” of townscapes that fell to homogenized redevelopment in Japan’s period of rapid economic growth.
Our thoughts of bygone days encourage us to reflect meaningfully on our lives, feel empathy for other people, and sustain hope for the future. This exhibition, by showing the diversity and constancy of “nostalgia,” offers viewers an opportunity to reflect on themselves as members of today’s turbulent society.

※Certain works will be rotated during the exhibition’s run.

First Period：November 16 (Sat) – December 5 (Thu)