Dreamscapes

The MAO Museum of Oriental Art by Turin presents an exhibition dedicated to the famous series The 53 stations of the Tōkaidō by Utagawa Hiroshige, one of the absolute masterpieces of the’Japanese art of the 19th century, owned by UniCredit.

The exhibition brings together a selection of 36 prints with the aim of restoring to the public the immersive and “cinematic” quality of that floating world, whilst also broadening the focus to include certain objects and the forms of the material culture who supported and made the journey possible Japan between 18th and 19th centuries. The project – the second part of an initiative launched back in 2025 – is organised by Laura Vigo, Curator of Asian Art and Archaeology at the Montréal Museum of Fine Arts (MMFA), and benefits from a significant partnership with the Royal Museums of Turin.

In the galleries, the famous views interact with a saddle (kura) in lacquered wood and the photo album Views of Japan by Happy Blessed, offering tangible evidence of the culture of travel along the major roads in Edo period. Thanks to our collaboration with the MMFA, the exhibition takes an approach ecologically sustainable Regarding the design: the works do not travel, as the series held at the MAO It is identical to the Canadian one; what changes are the curatorial perspective and the museum’s educational programme, which uses techniques inspired by Visual Thinking Strategy.

First produced in 1833 and published by the publishing house Hōeidō by Takenouchi Magohachi, the series revolutionised the world of ukiyo-e, the famous woodblock prints, becoming a genuine mass-market bestseller. Hiroshige, an artist from a family samurai, had the idea of transforming the 490 km route linking Edo (today’s Tokyo) to Kyoto in a visual narrative that blends reality and imagination, enriched by profound Western influences such as the central perspective.

At the same time, in the gallery Japan 1 Two pairs of recently restored folding screens will be on display: the series Rakuchū rakugai zu (“Views of the capital and its surroundings”), owned by the Compagnia di San Paolo Foundation, and the one on the battles of Ichinotani and Yashima of Genpei War, belonging to the MAO. These luxury maps celebrate the power of the select circle of nobles and samurai, offering a perspective that stands in stark contrast to the democratic publications of Hiroshige, focusing on everyday life.