An exhibition titled "Digital×Hokusai with the Charles Lang Freer Donated Collection" (「Digital×北斎 with チャールズ・ラング・フリーア寄贈コレクション」展) will run at NTT InterCommunication Center [ICC] (NTTインターコミュニケーション・センター) in Hatsudai, Tokyo, from Tuesday, December 15, 2026, to Sunday, March 28, 2027. The exhibition is organized by NTT East Corporation (NTT東日本).
Katsushika Hokusai's hand-painted works held by the Smithsonian National Museum of Asian Art (NMAA) in the United States can be seen only at that museum. For this exhibition, NTT ArtTechnology, working with アルステクネ, digitized the works in high definition on site, so that they return to Japan as digital works.
Background and Overview
The exhibition focuses on Hokusai works held by an overseas museum.
Charles Lang Freer (1854–1919), who made his fortune in the American railroad business, deepened his interest in Asian art through his friendship with the painter James McNeill Whistler. Pursuing a beauty shared by West and East, he carefully selected and collected Asian art, including Japanese art, and built a remarkable collection. His collection of Hokusai's hand-painted works is said to be the finest in the world. After Freer's death in 1919, the collection was donated to the Smithsonian Institution, and in 1923 the NMAA opened as the first national art museum and Asian art museum in the United States. However, under the terms of Freer's will, the works can be displayed only inside the NMAA, so opportunities to see them are limited.
As part of the commemoration of the 250th anniversary of the founding of the United States, and with the cooperation of the NMAA, works carefully selected from the Freer collection are now being introduced to audiences in Japan. The works chosen by the NMAA are folding screens. Few of Hokusai's folding screens remain in Japan, so every work on show is a rare one. Added to them is 《波濤図》, the last work on the theme of waves that Hokusai explored throughout his life. NTT ArtTechnology digitized these works in the United States together with アルステクネ, which has advanced digitization technology.
Viewing a folding screen is very different from viewing ukiyo-e prints or hand-painted hanging scrolls. A pair of six-panel screens, for example, becomes large enough to fill the viewer's field of vision when opened, drawing visitors into the world of the work.
The exhibition does not stop at reproducing these precious works. It uses digital technology to explore each work's world in greater depth and to expand it.
Message From the NMAA Director
Chase F. Robinson, Director, Smithsonian National Museum of Asian Art
"For the National Museum of Asian Art, the 250th anniversary of the founding of the United States is an occasion to celebrate not only our own history, but also our cooperative relationships in Japan, our visitors from around the world, and the precious cultural traditions that everyone can enjoy. In marking this milestone, there could be no more fitting way to bring the beloved Hokusai works held by our museum, the first national art museum in the United States, to the people of Japan than through advanced imaging and exhibition technology.
The collaboration between the National Museum of Asian Art and NTT East was made possible by unique digitization technology. Through this effort, the works can be seen by people who have no opportunity to visit Washington, D.C., with their texture, actual size, and every detail faithfully reproduced, and the immersive exhibition experience of this show breathes new life into these important works."
Works on Display
- 《十二ケ月花鳥図》 – pair of six-panel screens: interactive large-scale projection and high-definition reproduction screen (actual size)
- 《富士田園景図》 – pair of six-panel screens: 3D Dive Theater, high-definition reproduction screen (actual size), and high-definition reproduction (enlarged)
- 《海浜富士遠望図》 – pair of two-panel screens: 3D Dive Theater
- 《雑画屏風》 – single two-panel screen: large-scale projection
- 《観桜風俗図》 – pair of six-panel screens: 3D Dive Theater
- 《波濤図》 – single hanging scroll: 3D Dive Theater
- The 3D Dive Theater is an experiential work in which videos are projected on four surfaces (front, left, right, and floor), letting viewers feel immersed in the world of the work. Works 2, 3, 5, and 6 form a continuous presentation.
- A "Floating Giga Viewer" (フローティング・ギガ・ビューワー), which lets visitors freely zoom in on the digital data of all six works, will also be on display.
Video production for the interactive large-scale projection, large-scale projection, and 3D Dive Theater is by アルステクネ and 山口翔. Production cooperation for the high-definition reproduction screens is by Roland DG Corporation (ローランド ディー.ジー.株式会社).
High-Definition Digitization and Use of the Data
With the cooperation of the NMAA, NTT ArtTechnology and アルステクネ carried out the high-definition digitization and color proofing of the six works inside the NMAA. The digitization and data processing used the patented three-dimensional texture image processing technology (三次元質感画像処理技術, DTIP) of アルステクネ, producing digital data of about 2 billion pixels per square meter. This is the first time the NMAA's Hokusai hand-painted works have been digitized in such high definition.
The digital data will be used not only to create the digital works and high-definition reproductions shown at the exhibition, but is also expected to be used for research activities within the NMAA.
Exhibition Details
- Title: "Digital×Hokusai with the Charles Lang Freer Donated Collection" (「Digital×北斎 with チャールズ・ラング・フリーア寄贈コレクション」展)
- Exhibition website: https://www.ntt-east.co.jp/art/hokusai-freer/
- Dates: Tuesday, December 15, 2026, to Sunday, March 28, 2027
- Closed: Mondays (the following day if Monday is a national holiday or substitute holiday), the year-end and New Year holidays (Monday, December 28, to Monday, January 4), and the building maintenance day (Sunday, February 14)
- Hours: 11:00 AM to 6:00 PM (last admission 5:30 PM)
- Venue: NTT InterCommunication Center [ICC], Gallery B, Tokyo Opera City Tower 4F, 3-20-2 Nishi-Shinjuku, Shinjuku-ku, Tokyo 163-1404
- Access: 2-minute walk from the East Exit of Hatsudai Station on the Keio New Line
- Admission: General ¥1,200 (¥1,100), university students ¥1,000 (¥900). Prices in parentheses are group rates for 15 or more people.
- Free for holders of a disability certificate and one accompanying person, visitors aged 65 and over, high school students and younger (ID required on the day), and holders of an ICC annual passport.
- Online tickets: https://webket.jp/pc/ticket/index?fc=00434&ac=0100
- Organizer: NTT East Corporation
- Planning and operation: NTT ArtTechnology
- Special cooperation: Smithsonian National Museum of Asian Art
- Cooperation: アルステクネ, 一般財団法人北斎館, Roland DG Corporation, 地域循環型ミライ研究所 (NTT East)
Museum Goods
Museum goods and an exhibition catalog made using the works' high-definition digital data will be sold at the venue.
- Exhibition catalog
- Postcards
- Miniature folding screen
- Clear file (A4)
- Ticket folder
- Ring notebook (A5)
- Ippitsusen note paper (一筆箋)
- Tote bag
- Japanese tenugui towel
The goods are manufactured and sold by NTT ArtTechnology. The lineup is the current plan and may change.
What's Next
Exhibitions by NTT Group Companies
NTT East, the organizer of this exhibition, and the NTT Group companies that sponsor it plan to present the works shown in this exhibition on various occasions. The currently planned showings are as follows.
- World Economic Forum Annual Meeting, NTT DATA HOUSE (sponsored by NTT): Monday, January 18, to Friday, January 22, 2027, in Davos, Switzerland. Work shown: 《波濤図》
- International Horticultural Expo, NTT East Pavilion (organized by NTT East): Friday, March 19, to Sunday, September 26, 2027, in Yokohama, Kanagawa. Work shown: 《十二ケ月花鳥図》
Possible Exhibition at the Freer House
As one of the future collaboration measures, the NMAA is considering exhibiting the high-definition reproduction screens at the Freer House in Detroit.
