It would be difficult to find two other artists as individualistic and controversial while at once so deeply Japanese in their work. With his loud, monumental projects Nobuyoshi Araki has set trends and pushed back boundaries in world photography; on display will be 80 photographs on a wide variety of subjects created by Araki between 1972 and 2008, including images of his native Tokyo, 'kinbaku' images of Japanese bondage, nudes and floral arrangements. Shiro Tsujimura, perceived as a rebel and revolutionary in ceramic art circles, has forced his way centre stage on the contemporary art scene; displayed will be 60 vessels made after 2008 in traditional hand-moulding and firing techniques. In addition to the titanic productivity and uncompromising work of these two artists ‘on their own terms’, they share a clearly defined selection of ethical and aesthetic models drawn from the Zen tradition. This only apparently contrasting juxtaposition of two of Japan’s most outstanding artists is at the heart of the exhibition in the minimalist spaces of the Europe–Far East Gallery.

Please note that the exhibit is 18+ and minors must be accompanied by a legal guardian.