ARC-iJAC Activities

Greetings from the Art Research Center at Ritsumeikan University, Kyoto, Japan.

With the establishment of the International Joint Digital Archiving Center for Japanese Art and Culture (ARC-iJAC) in 2019, the Art Research Center strives to push the internationalization of research activities that transcend disciplines and geographic boundaries. NEWS New! ART RESEARCH vol. 26-2 is available International Collaboration to Accelerate Research on Japanese Culture--ARC and UCLA Launch Large-Scale Digital Archive The Art Research Center (ARC) and the Yanai Initiative for Globalizing Japanese Humanities at University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA), have launched a large-scale digitization project encompassing Japanese cultural resources held across the University of California system, including UCLA, UC Berkeley, and UC San Francisco. The project facilitates access to more than 30,000 early modern Japanese books, manuscripts, and ukiyo-e prints held across UC campuses. By digitizing these materials and making them publicly available online, the project seeks to establish a sustainable global digital infrastructure for research in Japanese studies. As its first phase, approximately 800 items from UCLA's collection were released on February 26, 2026, via the ARC website: https://www.arc.ritsumei.ac.jp/lib/vm/UCLA/ Broader access will also be available through the Yanai Initiative's open-access platform, Japan Past & Present (JPP). Through this platform, researchers will have access not only to the digitized materials, but also to ARC's advanced digital research environment, including AI-powered tools for the analysis of historical materials. >>Read more. Now Available: RADIANT Vol. 7 "ART" Ritsumeikan University Research Report (English Edition) The latest English edition of Ritsumeikan University's research report, RADIANT, features three articles highlighting faculty in the field of art: "Art and Life Intersect" (Prof. Yumi Kim Takenaka); "Reconceptualizing Japanese Art for a Global Audience" (Prof. Sayoko Ueda and Prof. Ryoko Matsuba); and "History, Identity, and Cultural Revival in the Ryūkyū Islands" (Prof. Travis Seifman). Database News! Digital Archive of Pre-War Theater Programs from the Shinbashi Enbujo is now available online As part of the FY2025 ARC-iJAC project, "Study on Theater-related Pictures Retrieval System using Record of Theater Play Database," pre-war performance programs from the Shinbashi Enbujo Theater--celebrating the 100th anniversary of its opening this year--have now been made publicly available. The digital archive, "Shochiku Otani Library's Shibai Banzuke Browsing System," was developed and launched by the ARC, based on an agreement with the Shochiku Otani Library. This initiative enhances access to rare and historically significant theater materials, while providing an important research infrastructure for the study of modern Japanese performing arts.  >> Read more. Shochiku Otani Library Theatrical Programs Viewing System: https://www.dh-jac.net/db1/ban/search_shochiku.php Shibai Banzuke (Kabuki Playbills) Portal Database: https://www.dh-jac.net/db1/ban/search_portal.php Online Exhibit! Ako City's 5th Digital Exhibition: Chushingura Ukiyo-e by the Lyrical Artist Hiroshige and the Fantastical Artist Kuniyoshi Ako City and the ARC have launched their fifth digital exhibition of Chushingura Ukiyo-e, featuring works by the lyrical Hiroshige and the fantastical Kuniyoshi. Building on four previous digital exhibitions, this installment highlights Chushingura-themed prints by the two leading Utagawa school artists of the late Edo period. >> Read more. Ako City Chushingura Digital Exhibition Room: https://www.arc.ritsumei.ac.jp/lib/vm/akochushingura/ Ako City Chushingura Ukiyo-e Database: https://www.dh-jac.net/db/nishikie/search_ako.php The ARC and Kawashima Selkon Textiles Launch Joint Research to Build Intellectual Infrastructure for Traditional Textiles    On October 10, 2025, the ARC and Kawashima Selkon Textiles Co., Ltd.--a Kyoto-based textile manufacturer with a 182-year-old history--concluded a joint research agreement on the digital archiving and utilization of historical textile patterns and designs. Through this project, the ARC will digitize approximately 5,000 obi designs from the Meiji to mid-Showa periods, along with textiles housed at the Kawashima Textile Museum, thereby establishing a foundation for long-term preservation and scholarly research. The collaboration will also link directly with the new College of Arts and Design and Graduate School of Science in Arts and Design, providing students hands-on learning opportunities grounded in Kyoto's rich craft traditions. Together, the ARC and Kawashima Selkon Textiles aim to build an industry-academia partnership that balances the preservation of traditional culture with its creative application, further strengthening contributions to education, research, and the local community. >>Read more. Video Release! International ARC Seminar Series: In advance of the establishment of the College of Arts and Design and Graduate School of Science in Arts and Design on Kinugasa Campus in April 2026, the ARC hosted a series of seminars featuring newly appointed faculty members, who presented their research themes and projects.  Archived videos of the seminars are now available online: https://www.arc.ritsumei.ac.jp/e/news/pc/026199.html　 (Click on each seminar title to access the corresponding video.) Public Exhibit at the ARC: The World of Hand-Painted Movie Posters and Signboards IV From December 1 - 6, 2025, the ARC hosted the fourth installment of its exhibition on hand-drawn movie posters from the early Showa period, when Japanese cinema was transitioning from silent films to "talkies" and weekly film releases generated a remarkable variety of poster art. The exhibit featured roughly 80 posters made at the Shinko Kinema studios in 1936-1937, as well as maps and photographs of Kyoto cinemas from the 1950s-1970s, offering a nostalgic glimpse into the Kyoto's film culture of that time. Upcoming Events March 14 (Sat), 2026 15th Forum for Knowledge, Arts, and Culture in Digital Humanities Venue: Future Plaza Conference Room, Ritsumeikan University Osaka Ibaraki Campus → About this event → Apply as a participant (Deadline: Wed, March 11) Previous issues: Autumn 2025, Summer 2025, Spring 2025, Winter 2024, Autumn 2024, Summer 2024, Spring 2024, Winter 2023, Autumn 2023, Summer 2023, Spring 2023, Winter 2022, Autumn 2022, Summer 2022, Spring 2022, Winter 2021, Autumn 2021, Summer 2021, Spring 2021, Winter 2020, Autumn 2020, Summer 2020, Spring 2020 view this email in your browser Copyright © 2025 Art Research Center, Ritsumeikan University. All rights reserved. Our mailing address is: 56-1 Toji-in Kitamachi, Kita-ku, Kyoto 603-8577 JAPAN Want to change how you receive these emails? You can update your preferences or unsubscribe from this list.

The Art Research Center (ARC) at Ritsumeikan University (Kyoto, Japan; Director: Ryo Akama) and the University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA) have on February 26, 2026 released the first batch of digitized books and prints produced under a comprehensive digital archiving project initiated last year, encompassing Japanese cultural resources held across the University of California (UC) system.

The University of California, widely recognized as one of the world's largest comprehensive university systems, holds more than 30,000 Japanese cultural materials--including ukiyo-e prints, classical manuscripts, and historical documents--across UCLA, UC Berkeley, UC San Francisco, and the other UC campuses. While these holdings constitute invaluable primary sources for research in the humanities and social sciences related to Japanese culture, access has to some extent been limited to on-site consultation, which has presented a significant barrier to their broader scholarly use.

To address these challenges, ARC and UCLA have launched a collaborative project to digitize materials and make them publicly accessible online, thereby establishing an environment in which they can be more widely utilized for research and education.

ARC has partnered with numerous museums and academic institutions in Japan and abroad--including institutions such as the Metropolitan Museum of Art and the British Museum--to digitize approximately one million items of Japanese cultural materials to date. In the present project, ARC plays a central role, drawing on its high-speed digitization techniques, methods optimized to accommodate the distinctive characteristics of diverse materials, and the expertise of its experienced specialist team.

As the first phase of the project, approximately 800 digitized items from the UCLA collection have been made publicly available through the ARC website.

(Public website:  https://www.arc.ritsumei.ac.jp/lib/vm/UCLA/)

This project has been selected as one of the initiatives supported by UCLA's Yanai Initiative for Globalizing Japanese Humanities,^※1 a program dedicated to advancing academic and cultural efforts that promote research on the preservation and dissemination of Japanese culture. The digitized materials will also be made available through the open-access platform Japan Past & Present (JPP),^※2 operated by the Yanai Initiative, further broadening public access and creating a more accessible environment for a broad and diverse range of users.

Moreover, this project extends beyond merely the digitization and online release of cultural materials. ARC will provide access, through the JPP platform, to its unique online research environment, the "ARC Research Space," enabling users to access ARC's extensive digital archive databases accumulated over many years, along with advanced tools such as AI-powered support for deciphering historical materials. Through these efforts, the project will help establish a new research environment open to the international scholarly community.

Ritsumeikan University also plans to closely integrate this project with the educational and research activities of its new College of Arts and Design and Graduate School of Science in Arts and Design, both scheduled to open in April 2026. Guided by the educational principles of "cultivating aesthetic sensibility" and "fostering individuals who connect creative practice with social implementation," the new college and graduate school will benefit from the ability to utilize the large archive of digitized cultural materials made available through this project as valuable teaching materials that significantly broaden the historical and geographical scope of classroom education.

ARC and UCLA will continue to build an environment in which valuable cultural resources can be freely accessed and utilized by scholars of Japanese studies around the world. By expanding and strengthening the research infrastructure, the two institutions aim to advance scholarship in the humanities and social sciences related to Japan and to open new possibilities for global research collaboration.

[About the Art Research Center (ARC), Ritsumeikan University]

The Art Research Center (ARC), Ritsumeikan University, is dedicated to conducting historical and social research and analysis of both tangible and intangible human cultural properties--including the visual arts, performing arts, and craftsmanship--while also documenting, organizing, preserving, and disseminating the knowledge generated through its research activities, with the aim of transmitting the cultural heritage of humankind to future generations.

As a research institute within a comprehensive university, ARC promotes interdisciplinary integration across the humanities and sciences, bringing together the collective expertise of scholars from diverse fields. With Kyoto as its principal base, the Center advances collaborative and project-based research initiatives--an approach that remains distinctive within the humanities.

[Notes]

*1: The Yanai Initiative for Globalizing Japanese Humanities
The Yanai Initiative for Globalizing Japanese Humanities was established in 2014 through a philanthropic gift from Tadashi Yanai (Chairman, President and CEO of Fast Retailing Co., Ltd.) to advance research dedicated to the preservation and dissemination of Japanese culture. It is a collaboration between UCLA and Waseda University in Tokyo. Professor Michael Emmerich (Dept. of Asian Languages & Cultures, UCLA)--who earned his Master's degree at Ritsumeikan University in 2001--serves as Director, facilitating support for large-scale international and interdisciplinary research and educational projects that examine Japanese history and contemporary society within an integrated framework.
Website: https://yanai-initiative.ucla.edu/

*2: Japan Past & Present (JPP)
Japan Past & Present is an open-access platform operated by the Yanai Initiative to advance research and education in Japanese humanities worldwide. It brings together information on Japanese humanities across disciplines and national contexts, connects scholars and institutions, and promotes the continued development of research and education. By expanding global access to scholarly resources and digital tools, the platform supports a more diverse, inclusive, and globally connected Japanese humanities community.
Website:  https://japanpastandpresent.org/en/about/mission/

As part of the 2025 ARC-iJAC project "Study on Theater-related Pictures Retrieval System using Record of Theater Play Database," pre-war performance programs from the Shinbashi Enbujo Theater, which celebrated its 100th anniversary this year, have been made public since December 23, 2025.

The digital archive "Shochiku Otani Library's Shibai Banzuke Browsing System" was developed and made publicly available by the Art Research Center of Ritsumeikan University, based on an agreement between the Shochiku Otani Library and the Art Research Center.

◆Shochiku Otani Library Theatrical Programs Viewing System
https://www.dh-jac.net/db1/ban/search_shochiku.php

◆ The theatrical programs in the Shochiku Otani Library Database can also be viewed in the ARC's larger Shibai Banzuke (Kabuki Playbills) Portal Database alongside those held by other institutions:
https://www.dh-jac.net/db1/ban/search_portal.php

Please click below for the announcement on the Shochiku Otani Library's website:
「新橋演舞場」戦前のプログラムをデジタルアーカイブで公開！ | 公益財団法人松竹大谷図書館

Greetings from the Art Research Center at Ritsumeikan University, Kyoto, Japan.

With the establishment of the International Joint Digital Archiving Center for Japanese Art and Culture (ARC-iJAC) in 2019, the Art Research Center strives to push the internationalization of research activities that transcend disciplines and geographic boundaries. NEWS Announcement! Call for Applications--FY 2026/27 International Joint Research Projects, ARC-iJAC Deadline: Mon, 15 Dec. 2025, 12:00 JST Note: Starting from FY 2026, we are introducing a new category--International Early Career Researcher Projects (with Research Fund).     August 2025: Prof. Ryo Akama and his team continued the digital archiving of the Japanese Collection at the Victoria and Albert Museum (V&A) in London.  We are truly grateful to Masami Yamada and Dr. Mary Redfern, Curators in the Asia Department at the V&A, for their generous support throughout the project.   September 2025: The 3rd Joint Colloquium of the Art Research Center (ARC) and the Center for Japanese Studies (CJS), University of California, Berkeley, was held at the C.V. Starr East Asian Library on September 17, fostering rich academic exchange. A heartfelt thank you to Prof. Junko Habu and Prof. Jonathan E. Zwicker of the CJS. An Interview with Nathalie Vandeperre (Curator of East Asian Collections, Royal Museums of Art and History, Belgium) Nathalie Vandeperre discusses the history and distinctive features of Japanese collection at the Royal Museums of Art and History (MRAH), which spans nearly two centuries and includes exceptionally well-preserved ukiyo-e prints.  She also reflects on the Museum's ongoing collaboration with the ARC since 2007, which has greatly enhanced public access to the collection through large-scale digitization and online publication. >> Read interview. >> Related article: 572 Illustrated Books from the Collection of the Royal Museums of Art and History of Belgium (MRAH) have been released (Jan. 20, 2025) MRAH Collection of Illustrated Books: https://www.dh-jac.net/db1/books/search_belgium.php MRAH Collection of Ukiyo-e Prints: https://www.dh-jac.net/db/nishikie/search_belgium.php Database News! Over 2,600 Ukiyo-e Prints from the Collection of the Tobacco & Salt Museum have been released   We are pleased to announce that more than 2,600 ukiyo-e prints from the collection of the Tobacco & Salt Museum (たばこと塩の博物館) in Tokyo are now publicly available in the ARC Database. This remarkable collection, mainly consisting of materials collected by the Monopoly Bureau of the Ministry of Finance, Japan, spans from the early Edo to the Meij period and offers rich insights into cultural, industrial, and commercial history. >> Read more. Tobacco & Salt Museum Database: https://www.dh-jac.net/db/nishikie/search_tsm.php Japanese Prints (Ukiyo-e) and Paintings Portal Database:  https://www.dh-jac.net/db/nishikie/search_portal.php Research and Digitization Collaboration between the V&A, SISJAC, and the ARC Featured on the V&A Blog In addition to its world-renowned ukiyo-e collection, the Victoria & Albert Museum (V&A) in London also houses a long-overlooked collection of Japanese illustrated books (ehon), comprising over 1,700 volumes from the 17th to 20th centuries. Previously only partially catalogued, this collection has now been the focus of a collaborative research and digitization project between the V&A's Asia Department, the Sainsbury Institute (SISJAC), and the ARC. Learn more in the V&A blog post "Revealing the V&A's Japanese Illustrated Book Collection" by Caroline Gill. The Shinsō Culture Digital Archive Featured on the NCC Blog: "Decoding Clothing Culture with the Shinsō Digital Archive" The Shinsō Culture Digital Archive, an ARC-iJAC joint research project, has been featured on the blog of the North American Coordinating Council on Japanese Library Resources (NCC). The Shinsō Culture Digital Archive explores Japan's modern clothing culture through the concept of shinsō--the integration of body and clothing. Developed as part of the Minpaku Costume Database Project (MCD), the archive is led by Dr. Haruko Takahashi (National Museum of Ethnology) in collaboration with Dr. Keiko Suzuki (Ritsumeikan University/ARC), alongside an interdisciplinary research team. The NCC blog post highlights two key databases--Chronology of Japanese Clothing Culture in the Modern Age Database and Image Database of Japanese Clothing Culture in the Modern Age. A dedicated portal site for the Shinsō Culture Digital Archive is available through the ARC Virtual Institute. NCC Blog post: bit.ly/ncc_shinsou_archive ARC Virtual Institute portal site: www.arc.ritsumei.ac.jp/lib/vm/shinsou/ Video News! RARA-Hosted Symposium Available on YouTube  The symposium "アート×テクノロジーが"可視化"する未来研究デザイン ── 異分野融合で挑むデジタル・パブリックヒューマニティーズ (Visualizing Art and Technology through Future Research Design: A Transdisciplinary Challenge in Digital Public Humanities)" was organized by the Ritsumeikan Advanced Research Academy (RARA) in collaboration with the ARC (→Program).    Part 1/2 Part 2/2 Upcoming Events To mark the launch of the College of Arts and Design/Graduate School of Science in Arts and Design at Ritsumeikan University's Kinugasa Campus in April 2026, the ARC began in October hosting a special seminar series featuring its faculty members who will be introducing their respective research themes. How to join the seminar series:  → Join via ZOOM. | → Join via YouTube.   November 19 (Wed), 2025, 18:30-20:00 JST 155. International ARC Seminar Speaker: Kazushi MUKAIYAMA  (Professor, College of Arts and Design, Ritsumeikan University) Topic: "Cultural heritage video mapping and Manga AI" November 26 (Wed), 2025, 18:30-20:00 JST 156. International ARC Seminar  Speaker: Takashi KIRIMURA (Associate Professor, Faculty of Cultural Studies, Kyoto Sangyo University/Professor, College of Arts and Design, Ritsumeikan University [from AY 2026]) Topic: "Digital Archive of Past Urban Landscape Using Photogrammetry" December 10 (Wed), 2025, 18:30-20:00 JST 157. International ARC Seminar  Speaker: Sayoko UEDA (Professor, Institute for General Education, Ritsumeikan University/Professor, College of Arts and Design, Ritsumeikan University [from AY 2026]) Topic: "From Exhibition to Exhibition: A Case Study of Ota Kijiro" December 17 (Wed), 2025, 18:30-20:00 158. International ARC Seminar  Speaker: Ryoko MATSUBA (Professor, College of Letters, Ritsumeikan University/Professor, College of Arts and Design, Ritsumeikan University [from AY 2026]) Topic: "Designing Connectives--Time, People, Skills, and Materials as Seen in Japanese Traditional Woodblock Printing" Previous issues: Summer 2025, Spring 2025, Winter 2024, Autumn 2024, Summer 2024, Spring 2024, Winter 2023, Autumn 2023, Summer 2023, Spring 2023, Winter 2022, Autumn 2022, Summer 2022, Spring 2022, Winter 2021, Autumn 2021, Summer 2021, Spring 2021, Winter 2020, Autumn 2020, Summer 2020, Spring 2020 view this email in your browser Copyright © 2025 Art Research Center, Ritsumeikan University. All rights reserved. Our mailing address is: 56-1 Toji-in Kitamachi, Kita-ku, Kyoto 603-8577 JAPAN Want to change how you receive these emails? You can update your preferences or unsubscribe from this list.

Related article → 572 Illustrated Books from the Collection of the Royal Museums of Art and History of Belgium (MRAH) have been released

Related databases → MRAH Old Books Database | MRAH Ukiyo-e Database

Background:
Nathalie Vandeperre graduated with a degree in Sinology from KU Leuven (Belgium), where she also obtained a diploma in Cultural Studies. After working for several years as a librarian in the Chinese Library and as a lecturer in the Educational Department of the MRAH, she joined the museum's East Asian Department. In 2013, she was appointed curator of the Japanese, Chinese, and Korean collections of the museum. She has curated several exhibitions and takes a particular interest in the history of the MRAH's collections.

Ms. Vandeperre, thank you very much for your time today. Your academic background is in Sinology. What led you to pursue a career as a curator, and how did your interest in Japanese art develop?

Vandeperre: I studied Latin and Greek in secondary school, and when I entered university, I was eager to explore civilizations beyond the European classical world. I turned my attention to Asia but initially found it difficult to choose between Japanese and Chinese studies--I actually had no particular preference. I began studying sinology and soon developed a strong interest in Chinese art, especially painting.

At the beginning of my museum career, there were two curators--one responsible for the Chinese and Korean collections, and another one for the Japanese collection--and I was fortunate to work as an assistant to both. In 1999, I was assigned to the project of opening a Museum for Japanese Art, which truly marked the beginning of my deep engagement with the Japanese art collection. I found it absolutely fascinating.

Later, due to budgetary constraints, the two curatorial positions were merged after the curators retired, and that is how I came to oversee the entire East Asian collection. I have been very lucky in this respect.

The ARC has been collaborating with the MRAH since 2007 to digitize its extensive Japanese collection. Could you tell us how this collaboration was initiated?

Vandeperre: The collaboration with ARC was initiated by Dr. Daan Kok--now curator at the Wereldmuseum Leiden--who was our colleague in Brussels for a year. Through his efforts, Prof. Ryo Akama and his digitization team, led by Dr. Ryoko Matsuba, began the digitization of our prints in 2007. Since then, they have continued to visit twice a year--except during the COVID-19 pandemic--and over the years have managed to digitize the majority of our prints, illustrated books, historical maps, and kabuki posters. 

Organized by the Center for Japanese Studies (CJS), University of California, Berkeley, and the Art Research Center (ARC), Ritsumeikan University, a joint colloquium was held at the University of California, Berkeley, on September 17, 2025.

Date & Time: Wednesday, September 17, 2025, from 3:00 PM
Venue: East Asian Library, University of California, Berkeley

Organizer: Art Research Center (ARC), Ritsumeikan University; Center for Japanese Studies (CJS), University of California, Berkeley
Supported by: International Joint Digital Archiving Center for Japanese Art and Culture (ARC-iJAC), Art Research Center, Ritsumeikan University

(This was a closed event.)

Program

The Art Research Center (ARC), Ritsumeikan University, is pleased to share that the Shinsō Culture Digital Archive--adopted as an international joint research project by the ARC-iJAC in FY 2024 and FY 2025--has been featured on the blog of the North American Coordinating Council on Japanese Library Resources (NCC).  

The Shinsō Culture Digital Archive investigates Japan's modern clothing culture through the concept of shinsō--the integration of body and clothing. Developed as part of the long-term Minpaku Costume Database Project (MCD), the archive is led by Dr. Haruko Takahashi (Visiting Researcher, National Museum of Ethnology) and realized through a cross-disciplinary collaboration that includes ARC faculty member Dr. Keiko Suzuki (Graduate School of Letters, Ritsumeikan University).  

Among its four databases, the NCC blog highlights two in particular: the Chronology of Japanese Clothing Culture in the Modern Age Database, which reconstructs everyday dress and perceptions of the body from the Meiji Restoration to the end of World War II using contemporaneous newspapers, magazines, and catalogs; and the Image Database of Japanese Clothing Culture in the Modern Age, which leverages detailed illustrations from serialized novels and other materials to provide rare visual insights into styles and appearances of the time.  

The ARC has supported the project by launching a dedicated portal site within the ARC Virtual Institute to enhance accessibility to these interdisciplinary resources both in Japan and internationally, aiming to broaden global engagement with Japan's clothing history and material culture. 

Learn more about the project in the NCC's blog post "Japanese Studies Spotlight: Decoding Clothing Culture with the Shinsō Digital Archive," co-authored by Dr. Haruko Takahashi and Dr. Keiko Suzuki.

Explore portal site of the Shinso Culture Digital Archive in the ARC Virtual Institute: https://www.arc.ritsumei.ac.jp/lib/vm/shinsou/

We are pleased to announce the 3rd Joint Colloquium co-hosted by the Center for Japanese Studies (CJS), University of California, Berkeley, and the Art Research Center (ARC), Ritsumeikan University.

Date & Time: Wednesday, September 17, 2025, from 3:00 PM
Venue: East Asian Library, University of California, Berkeley

Organizer: Art Research Center (ARC), Ritsumeikan University; Center for Japanese Studies (CJS), University of California, Berkeley
Supported by: International Joint Digital Archiving Center for Japanese Art and Culture (ARC-iJAC), Art Research Center, Ritsumeikan University

(This is a closed event.)

Program

In addition to its world-renowned, extensive collection of ukiyo-e prints, the Victoria & Albert Museum (V&A) in London also holds a significant, yet long-overlooked collection of Japanese illustrated books (ehon).

Originally part of the National Art Library before being moved to the V&A's Asia Department, this collection comprises more than 1,700 volumes across approximately 500 different titles, spanning the 17th to 20th centuries.

Until recently, the collection had only been partially catalogued, with no comprehensive resource available. An ongoing research and digitization collaboration between the V&A's Asia Department, the Sainsbury Institute for the Study of Japanese Arts and Cultures (SISJAC), and the Art Research Center (ARC) is addressing this gap.

The project involves digitizing the books, compiling catalogue entries, and producing bilingual records (Japanese and English) for the V&A's Explore the Collections database.

Learn more about the collection, the project's background, and its achievements in the V&A blog post "Revealing the V&A's Japanese Illustrated Book Collection" by Caroline Gill.
URL: https://www.vam.ac.uk/blog/museum-life/revealing-the-vas-japanese-illustrated-book-collection

London, August 2025: Prof. Ryo Akama and his digital-archiving team with
Masami Yamada (Curator, Asia Department, Victoria & Albert Museum)