Japanese animation aesthetics may be considered parallel with the country’s excellent traditional arts. No other animation character has risen to the pinnacle of global popularity and sales than Pokémon. What began in 1996 as a media franchise of video games, animated series and films, and trading card game created by Satoshi Tajiri, has evolved into a colossal cultural phenomenon that has allured not only youngsters but adults as well all over the world.

The acronym for Pocket Monsters, Pokémon has consistently attracted animation and game lovers’ attention due to its powerful marketing ability of perpetually innovating new sets of cards and animal characters. Presently, there are over a thousand characters in nine generations, enough to challenge followers in battles of victory and defeat, and training other characters.

This astute sense of adaptability prompted Pokémon Company to embark on a concept of fusing Japanese traditional crafts with the “epic battles” of Pokémon. In “POKÉMON x KOGEI—Playful Encounters of Pokémon and Japanese Craft,” currently exhibiting at Azabudai Hills Gallery in Tokyo until February 2, 2025, twenty Japanese contemporary artists have been invited to interpret Pokémon’s presence in ceramics, lacquerwork, woodwork, metalwork, glasswork, textile, dyeing, weaving, and other crafts involving an enormous variety of materials and techniques. Initially held at the National Crafts Museum in Ishikawa Prefecture in 2023 and toured in the United States and various parts of Japan, the exhibit at Azabudai Hills Gallery showcases about eighty outstanding works that highlight new sensibilities in texture, gesture, shape, and appearance never seen before.

The first section “Appearance—Approach!” displays a range of materials in metal, earth, ceramics, and wood. Incredible pieces by Taiichiro Yoshida and Sadamasa Imai are most notable. Yoshida’s huge animal sculptures Vaporeon (2022) in bronze, Eevee (2022) and Flareon (2022) in copper, and Jolteon (2022) in gold and silver, emphasise traditional copper colouring with gilding and cloisonné.

Another work by Yoshida, Mewtwo from the popular Pokémon character, stands two meters tall in metal engraving. Numerous copper parts with pin-like protrusions were inserted into the base of the statue. The traditional cloisonné technique Shippo-yaki applied to the eyes makes the creature seem almost alive, injecting an intimidating feeling from a towering height.

Imai’s colourful sea creatures, such as Venusaur (2022), on the other hand, centre on the hand-formed body by stone carving, then added with soil and overglaze enamels. Imai intended to extract memories and connect them to invoke a characteristic of realism.

Delicate woodwork by Hokkaido artist Toru Fukuda are quite impressive. Insects and birds are created with the traditional Zogan wood inlay technique by moving a piece of wood that acts as the body and fitting another piece of wood into it. He also adopted different curves for each of the wing patterns for the insect, which transmit a lifelike sensation.

Articulated Gyarados (2022) by Haruo Mitsuta from Tottori portrays a dragon creature made of movable metal ornaments, such as copper, silver, and brass. The strong luster effect heightens the fierce expression of the dragon’s face.

Ceramic and porcelain cubes and bowls in underglaze and overglaze enamels by Yuki Hayama from Saga are utterly exquisite. Vase with Pokémon of the Universe (2022) is a beautiful sphere in shades of blue, white, and copper colours that uses the Alas-alasan pattern common in batik designs, demonstrating plants and animals that grow in the forest. Over 500 Pokémon characters are illustrated on the sphere.

The second section “Stories—Jump in!” engages in the active world of Pokémon—catching, training, evolving, and trading Pokémon cards. The artists traveled in the characters’ imaginary dimension between Pokémon and craft. The hanging yellow fabric installation Pikachu’s Adventures in a Forest (2023) by Reiko Sudo from Ibaraki is one of the most eye-catching installations. Sudo wove together various images and positions of “Pokémon textiles,” focusing on Pikachu. Visitors walk along the long, suspended fabric strips like exploring through a glittering golden forest.

A glass display at the centre of a room reveals some of the most exhilarating works in this exhibition. Tile (Pikachu), Cup (Pikachu), Bowl (Pikachu) (2023) covers a large range of cups and bowls embedded with Pikachu characters set against a pillar of gold-tiled patterns, likewise, of Pikachu faces by Hiroshima artist Takuro Kuwata. The porcelain and stoneware body of the cups are molded using a special machine, decorated with gold and platinum glaze, and transfer printing of Pikachu motifs. Owning any of these cups and bowls surely puts one in a playful mood.

Around the glass encasement are elegant kimono fabrics with tiny Pokémon illustrations. Eiichi Shiroma from Okinawa has beautifully worked on Bingata stencil dyeing on silk to recreate a familiar setting in one of the Pokémon stories. In Kimono, "Island to Island," Ryukyu Bingata, the theme “wind of travel” depicts leaf patterns superimposed as one unit and representing Pikachu, Taichu, Roulet, Litten, Popplio, and Oricorio that inhabits the island. The five Pokémon colours—red, blue, yellow, green, and pink—perfectly suit the design.

Large decorative jars, such as Adventure Begins (2022) in glass, casting and enamel spray by Kazumi Ikemoto from Kyoto reminisce the Galar region in the Pokémon game. The art portrays adventures of young Pokémon and its friends.

The final section “Life Cherish!” further dives into the essence of craft and decoration. Highly ornamented jars, pots, porcelain, kimonos, accessories, and minute objet d’art fully grasp Pokémon’s vitality and charm. Kyoto artist Kasumi Ueba has produced wonderful large-scale animal sculptures in stoneware with overglaze enamels. The intricate patterns in blue, brown, yellow, and gold spread from head to toe, including protruding ears and tails. Grookey Teabowl with Arabesque Pattern (2023), for instance, when scrutinised closely, appears like mosaic. Some motifs symbolise good fortune and the life force of dreams.

Two striking pieces, Moonlight Pokémon Edition by Shigeki Hayashi and Untitled, a huge black-lacquered stone by Nobuyuki Tanaka, should not be missed. Gifu artist Hayashi created a life-size Pokémon trainer in white porcelain suit, composed of over 130 pieces of plaster casts. Tanaka’s two-metre stone art was inspired by the Pokémon move Shadow Claw to elucidate mysterious blackness. The gloss effect on the smooth surface deceives the sense of distance and outline, making one peep deeper into its dark shadows.

This interesting exhibition honours the supreme quality of Japanese craftsmanship, aligned harmoniously with modern pop culture.