A Historic Space Specially Opened x The Worldview of Masanobu Ando: An Art Experience at Gekkeikan in Fushimi, Kyoto! Limited Design Tickets Now Available for the Photo Exhibition 'Melancholy Paradise'
Gekkeikan is hosting 'Melancholy Paradise', a photo exhibition by actor/photographer Masanobu Ando, at the normally closed historic Gekkeikan Shinka from April 18 to May 17, 2026. Visitors can purchase three types of limited design tickets.
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Gekkeikan Co., Ltd. (President: Haruhiko Okura, Headquarters: Fushimi-ku, Kyoto) is currently hosting the photo exhibition 'Melancholy Paradise' by actor and photographer Masanobu Ando as a special exhibition for 'KG+', a satellite event of the KYOTOGRAPHIE Kyoto International Photography Festival. The exhibition runs from Saturday, April 18, 2026, to Sunday, May 17, 2026, at the Gekkeikan Shinka (former Okura family residence), which is normally closed to the public.
To allow visitors to enjoy a more fulfilling art experience, we have created 'Limited Design Tickets' featuring Masanobu Ando's artwork. You can choose your favorite from three different designs (available for purchase at the Gekkeikan Okura Sake Museum shop).
A Once-in-a-Lifetime Special Experience Found Only at This Venue
The setting, Gekkeikan Shinka (the former Okura family residence), is a 100-year-old historic building constructed between the end of the Taisho era and the early Showa era. This space, which blends Japanese and Western styles—featuring a Western-style annex based on traditional Japanese architecture—is a special place not normally open to the public. The main garden, originally designed by the famous landscaper Jihei Ogawa VIII, was redesigned in 2025 by Jihei Ogawa XIII, inheriting the spirit of the original. This serene environment resonates with the 'Melancholy Paradise' captured by Masanobu Ando, expanding into a dense space that gently envelops the emotions of its visitors.
Emotions sway, eventually calm, and then begin to move again. Masanobu Ando's works quietly affirm this ebb and flow of emotions that everyone experiences in life. Please spend a rich time in dialogue with the artworks in this place that conveys the layers of history to the present day.
About the Exhibited Works
People, waves, flowers. Although the motifs differ, what underlies all the works is the ambivalence of 'life and death' and 'light and shadow'. The unique perspective on life and death that Masanobu Ando has cultivated by experiencing numerous lives as an actor is crystallized into a poetic gaze. Furthermore, the figure of 'water' appears symbolically in this exhibition. The purifying power of the water's surface gives a deep dimension to the entire body of work.
In the exhibition space viewing the garden from the Japanese-style room, the natural light pouring in allows the photographs and the scenery of the garden to resonate as if melting into each other. Please experience at the venue the sensation of the artwork seemingly synchronizing with the purity of the spring water (well) that can be seen in the courtyard of the adjacent Gekkeikan Okura Sake Museum.
Special Exclusive Photographs for Gekkeikan
In conjunction with this exhibition, Masanobu Ando visited the site of Gekkeikan's sake brewing to create exclusive new photographs. Water, rice, fermenting mash (moromi), and the activities of the people working there. These works, which freshly and poetically capture the unseen accumulation of time, will be displayed at the entrance of the Gekkeikan Okura Sake Museum during the exhibition period.
Three Types of Limited Design Tickets to Choose From
We have prepared three types of 'Limited Design Tickets' featuring Masanobu Ando's artwork (available at the Gekkeikan Okura Sake Museum shop). Please keep your favorite ticket as proof of your visit to the exhibition and as a bookmark to color your memories of the trip.
Exhibition Overview
Exhibition Name: Melancholy Paradise
Artist: Masanobu Ando
Dates: Saturday, April 18, 2026 – Sunday, May 17, 2026 *Closed on Wednesday, May 6 (Holiday)
Hours: 11:00 AM – 4:00 PM
Venue: Gekkeikan Shinka (former Okura family residence), 247 Minamihama-cho, Fushimi-ku, Kyoto (Next to the Gekkeikan Okura Sake Museum)
Access:
[By Keihan Railway] 5 minutes walk from Chushojima Station (Keihan Main Line), 10 minutes walk from Fushimi-Momoyama Station (Keihan Main Line)
[By Kintetsu Railway] 10 minutes walk from Momoyama-Goryomae Station (Kintetsu Kyoto Line)
*If arriving from JR Kyoto Station: Take the Kintetsu Kyoto Line from Kintetsu Kyoto Station and get off at Momoyama-Goryomae Station.
[By JR] 18 minutes walk from Momoyama Station (JR Nara Line)
Admission Fee: 500 yen (Please purchase tickets at the Gekkeikan Okura Sake Museum next to the venue)
Organizer: KG+ (KYOTOGRAPHIE Kyoto International Photography Festival Satellite Event)
Sponsor: Gekkeikan Co., Ltd.
Production: KEN OFFICE Co., Ltd., Q
Cooperation: Fujifilm Imaging Systems Co., Ltd.
Notes:
There is no parking lot. If you are arriving by car, please use nearby coin-operated parking.
Admission may be restricted during crowded times.
Masanobu Ando Profile
Born in Kawasaki City, Kanagawa Prefecture. Debuted as an actor in 1996. While remaining active both domestically and internationally since then, he has also continued to work energetically as a photographer to express himself from a perspective different from acting. His past photography work includes magazines such as 'GQ', 'SWITCH', 'Numero', and 'with', as well as Rihito Itagaki's photo book 'Rihito18'. He exhibited photographs at 'ART PHOTO TOKYO -edition zero-' in 2016 and 'HILLS ZINE MARKET 2019 ART & ZINE' in 2019. Recently, he held a photo exhibition featuring Aoi Morikawa at BOOK MARC in 2022.
To allow visitors to enjoy a more fulfilling art experience, we have created 'Limited Design Tickets' featuring Masanobu Ando's artwork. You can choose your favorite from three different designs (available for purchase at the Gekkeikan Okura Sake Museum shop).
A Once-in-a-Lifetime Special Experience Found Only at This Venue
The setting, Gekkeikan Shinka (the former Okura family residence), is a 100-year-old historic building constructed between the end of the Taisho era and the early Showa era. This space, which blends Japanese and Western styles—featuring a Western-style annex based on traditional Japanese architecture—is a special place not normally open to the public. The main garden, originally designed by the famous landscaper Jihei Ogawa VIII, was redesigned in 2025 by Jihei Ogawa XIII, inheriting the spirit of the original. This serene environment resonates with the 'Melancholy Paradise' captured by Masanobu Ando, expanding into a dense space that gently envelops the emotions of its visitors.
Emotions sway, eventually calm, and then begin to move again. Masanobu Ando's works quietly affirm this ebb and flow of emotions that everyone experiences in life. Please spend a rich time in dialogue with the artworks in this place that conveys the layers of history to the present day.
About the Exhibited Works
People, waves, flowers. Although the motifs differ, what underlies all the works is the ambivalence of 'life and death' and 'light and shadow'. The unique perspective on life and death that Masanobu Ando has cultivated by experiencing numerous lives as an actor is crystallized into a poetic gaze. Furthermore, the figure of 'water' appears symbolically in this exhibition. The purifying power of the water's surface gives a deep dimension to the entire body of work.
In the exhibition space viewing the garden from the Japanese-style room, the natural light pouring in allows the photographs and the scenery of the garden to resonate as if melting into each other. Please experience at the venue the sensation of the artwork seemingly synchronizing with the purity of the spring water (well) that can be seen in the courtyard of the adjacent Gekkeikan Okura Sake Museum.
Special Exclusive Photographs for Gekkeikan
In conjunction with this exhibition, Masanobu Ando visited the site of Gekkeikan's sake brewing to create exclusive new photographs. Water, rice, fermenting mash (moromi), and the activities of the people working there. These works, which freshly and poetically capture the unseen accumulation of time, will be displayed at the entrance of the Gekkeikan Okura Sake Museum during the exhibition period.
Three Types of Limited Design Tickets to Choose From
We have prepared three types of 'Limited Design Tickets' featuring Masanobu Ando's artwork (available at the Gekkeikan Okura Sake Museum shop). Please keep your favorite ticket as proof of your visit to the exhibition and as a bookmark to color your memories of the trip.
Exhibition Overview
Exhibition Name: Melancholy Paradise
Artist: Masanobu Ando
Dates: Saturday, April 18, 2026 – Sunday, May 17, 2026 *Closed on Wednesday, May 6 (Holiday)
Hours: 11:00 AM – 4:00 PM
Venue: Gekkeikan Shinka (former Okura family residence), 247 Minamihama-cho, Fushimi-ku, Kyoto (Next to the Gekkeikan Okura Sake Museum)
Access:
[By Keihan Railway] 5 minutes walk from Chushojima Station (Keihan Main Line), 10 minutes walk from Fushimi-Momoyama Station (Keihan Main Line)
[By Kintetsu Railway] 10 minutes walk from Momoyama-Goryomae Station (Kintetsu Kyoto Line)
*If arriving from JR Kyoto Station: Take the Kintetsu Kyoto Line from Kintetsu Kyoto Station and get off at Momoyama-Goryomae Station.
[By JR] 18 minutes walk from Momoyama Station (JR Nara Line)
Admission Fee: 500 yen (Please purchase tickets at the Gekkeikan Okura Sake Museum next to the venue)
Organizer: KG+ (KYOTOGRAPHIE Kyoto International Photography Festival Satellite Event)
Sponsor: Gekkeikan Co., Ltd.
Production: KEN OFFICE Co., Ltd., Q
Cooperation: Fujifilm Imaging Systems Co., Ltd.
Notes:
There is no parking lot. If you are arriving by car, please use nearby coin-operated parking.
Admission may be restricted during crowded times.
Masanobu Ando Profile
Born in Kawasaki City, Kanagawa Prefecture. Debuted as an actor in 1996. While remaining active both domestically and internationally since then, he has also continued to work energetically as a photographer to express himself from a perspective different from acting. His past photography work includes magazines such as 'GQ', 'SWITCH', 'Numero', and 'with', as well as Rihito Itagaki's photo book 'Rihito18'. He exhibited photographs at 'ART PHOTO TOKYO -edition zero-' in 2016 and 'HILLS ZINE MARKET 2019 ART & ZINE' in 2019. Recently, he held a photo exhibition featuring Aoi Morikawa at BOOK MARC in 2022.