UKIYO: Past and Now – A Night of Cultural Reflection at Soho House Berlin
On the evening of July 29, 2025, the intimate setting of Soho House Berlin played host to a unique conversation bridging time, tradition, and transformation. Titled "UKIYO: Past and Now", the event explored how the concept of ukiyo—originally meaning "floating world" in Japanese—continues to evolve in the modern era.
Hosted
by Marie Louise & GEN Sadakane
As hosts, we (Marie Louise and I) curated a night designed not just as a panel discussion, but as a shared cultural moment—where deep-rooted Japanese aesthetics met Berlin's vibrant creative pulse.
Featured Guests
🎨 Kanta Kimura
A celebrated visual artist known for his poetic minimalism, Kanta Kimura shared how ukiyo serves as both a personal philosophy and an artistic strategy. His work, often meditative and repetitive, invites viewers to slow down and contemplate impermanence—not as loss, but as beauty in motion.
👤 Koichi Yamamura
We were especially honored to welcome Koichi Yamamura, a leading figure in the Japanese art and valuation world.
Born in 1976 in Tokyo, Koichi graduated from Seijo University and began his career at Shinwa Art Auction. In 2006, he joined Eizendo Gallery, where he rose to become representative director in 2013. Since 2016, he has also been affiliated with TV Tokyo’s subsidiaries, and is known across Japan as a regular appraiser on the beloved program "Kaiun! Nandemo Kanteidan."
His insights offered a rare window into the contemporary Japanese art market—how value, authenticity, and tradition interact in a fast-changing global landscape. Yamamura emphasized the importance of storytelling and provenance, especially in a world where art is both an emotional and economic asset.
Topics and Takeaways
✨ Ukiyo as a Lens – The idea of ukiyo was unpacked not just as a historical term from the Edo period, but as a dynamic worldview—one that invites mindfulness, creativity, and emotional presence.
🌀 Art as Translation Across Time – Both guests reflected on the power of art to carry ideas across centuries. Tradition isn’t static; it’s a river, not a museum.
🌍 Berlin as a Crossroads – The choice of Berlin, a city in flux and known for its rich cultural dialogue, was deliberate. It served as an ideal backdrop for a conversation that floated between East and West, then and now.
Closing Notes
The night ended with drinks, stories, and a feeling of shared reverence—for craft, for history, and for the art of being present.
To everyone who joined us—thank you for making the evening unforgettable.
