'Photography Exhibition through Kojien' Confirmed to Create Stories from Encounters with Words! Cross-Genre Talk Events on Words Also Held Simultaneously.
The creative team kuwaku, with full cooperation from Iwanami Shoten, will host an exhibition combining Kojien dictionary entries with photography. Talk events featuring Ai Higuchi and other language professionals are also scheduled.
📋 Article Processing Timeline
- 📰 Published: April 24, 2026 at 19:00
- 🔍 Collected: April 24, 2026 at 10:31
- 🤖 AI Analyzed: April 25, 2026 at 03:23 (16h 51m after Collected)
Thoughts on the Project
When we know words, our resolution of the world increases. When we know words, we can communicate with others. When we know words, creative power wells up. We believe that words will surely continue to enrich humanity in the future.
Recently, we have entered an era where almost anything can be found by searching the internet, and AI and predictive text generate high-precision sentences for us. However, in exchange for that convenience, we feel that we have inadvertently started to overlook the joy and happiness of the 'moment of encountering new words.'
The organizer, kuwaku, is a team that makes a living by creating words, such as catchphrases and scripts, and creating through words. We don't think convenience is evil. However, as we face words every day, we felt the need to once again shine a spotlight on an activity that we feel will be lost if things continue as they are.
About the 'Photography Exhibition through Kojien'
What is exhibited in the 'Photography Exhibition through Kojien' are photographs of casual moments accompanied by an unfamiliar sentence placed beside them. By viewing the paired works with 'Kojien' as a guide, the photographs and words intertwine within you, allowing you to savor the story of the work more deeply.
Iwanami Shoten, the publisher of 'Kojien', is fully cooperating with this exhibition. Utilizing various words and definitions listed in the 'Kojien 7th Edition', elaborate exhibits will be displayed.
The exhilaration of exploring a dictionary. The colorfulness of the Japanese language. The joy of encountering words. We hope you will come and experience it for yourself.
About the Talk Events
Coinciding with 'Word Day' on May 18th and 'Kojien Anniversary' on May 25th, we will hold cross-genre talk events to discuss words with professionals of language.
The guests for the 1st session are singer-songwriter Ai Higuchi and poet Yumi Fuzuki. We have invited these two, who make a living by weaving the similar yet different words of 'lyrics' and 'poetry' to create works, to have a deep yet relaxed conversation about the possibilities of words and self-expression, the power of words, and their charm.
The guest for the 2nd session is Yasunari Hiraki from Iwanami Shoten's dictionary department. He has been involved in editing 'Kojien' for many years and is a dictionary-making professional, said to be the model for the dictionary editorial department member in the protagonist of 'The Great Passage' (Fune wo Amu). Mr. Hiraki must have a unique 'perspective on words' cultivated through his work. Especially because it's Kojien Anniversary, we hope to create a time to share the fascination of words while listening to stories from the maker's side of 'Kojien'.
Moderating both days will be Kosuke Nakatani, a planner at kuwaku/Drawing and Manual. As someone who interacts with words in a different genre from the guests, such as copywriting and planning, he will facilitate to ensure meaningful events.
* Reserve talk event tickets from the booking site below (external site)
https://kojientalkevent.peatix.com/view
Speaker Profiles
Ai Higuchi
Born in 1989. Singer-songwriter.
Born in Kagawa, raised in Nagano, moved to Tokyo for university, and currently resides in Tokyo.
She started learning classical piano at age 2, and subsequently experienced violin, chorus, vocal music, drums, and guitar, coming into contact with various genres of music. Started her activities mainly playing keyboard and singing at age 18.
In 2016, she made her major debut with the 1st ALBUM 'Hyakurokujudo' (160 Degrees).
Her alto voice and piano melodies, which press forward with overwhelming persuasiveness, and her essentially high musicality have received high praise from both inside and outside the industry, leading to appearances at major festivals like 'FUJI ROCK FESTIVAL'.
In 2022, 'Akuma no Ko', written as the ending theme for the TV anime 'Attack on Titan' The Final Season Part 2, caused a huge response and swept charts worldwide.
Furthermore, in recent years, she has also been active as a writer, providing songs for artists like Shingo Katori, Non, Yoshino Aoyama, and ChroNoiR, and writing lyrics for numerous songs including the theme song for the anime 'Bocchi the Rock!' under the name 'Ai Higuchi', garnering attention for her songwriting abilities.
Also, in 2025, she formed the unit 'Ten Ten Taka Taka' with Afro (MOROHA), with whom she has had a deep friendship for a long time. She is in charge of Vo/Key as 'Ai-chan'.
Yumi Fuzuki
Poet. Born in Hokkaido in 1991, resides in the Tokyo metropolitan area. With poetry and essays at the core, she deeply spells out experiences of words, mind, and body.
In 2008, won the Gendaishi Techo Prize at age 16. With her 1st poetry collection 'The Inappropriate Me in an Appropriate World' (Chikuma Bunko), she won the Chuya Nakahara Prize and the Yutaka Maruyama Memorial Modern Poetry Prize as the youngest ever at age 18. In 2023, won the Saika Tomita Prize for her 4th poetry collection 'Something Like a Parallel World' (Shichosha). Latest [Text ends here]
When we know words, our resolution of the world increases. When we know words, we can communicate with others. When we know words, creative power wells up. We believe that words will surely continue to enrich humanity in the future.
Recently, we have entered an era where almost anything can be found by searching the internet, and AI and predictive text generate high-precision sentences for us. However, in exchange for that convenience, we feel that we have inadvertently started to overlook the joy and happiness of the 'moment of encountering new words.'
The organizer, kuwaku, is a team that makes a living by creating words, such as catchphrases and scripts, and creating through words. We don't think convenience is evil. However, as we face words every day, we felt the need to once again shine a spotlight on an activity that we feel will be lost if things continue as they are.
About the 'Photography Exhibition through Kojien'
What is exhibited in the 'Photography Exhibition through Kojien' are photographs of casual moments accompanied by an unfamiliar sentence placed beside them. By viewing the paired works with 'Kojien' as a guide, the photographs and words intertwine within you, allowing you to savor the story of the work more deeply.
Iwanami Shoten, the publisher of 'Kojien', is fully cooperating with this exhibition. Utilizing various words and definitions listed in the 'Kojien 7th Edition', elaborate exhibits will be displayed.
The exhilaration of exploring a dictionary. The colorfulness of the Japanese language. The joy of encountering words. We hope you will come and experience it for yourself.
About the Talk Events
Coinciding with 'Word Day' on May 18th and 'Kojien Anniversary' on May 25th, we will hold cross-genre talk events to discuss words with professionals of language.
The guests for the 1st session are singer-songwriter Ai Higuchi and poet Yumi Fuzuki. We have invited these two, who make a living by weaving the similar yet different words of 'lyrics' and 'poetry' to create works, to have a deep yet relaxed conversation about the possibilities of words and self-expression, the power of words, and their charm.
The guest for the 2nd session is Yasunari Hiraki from Iwanami Shoten's dictionary department. He has been involved in editing 'Kojien' for many years and is a dictionary-making professional, said to be the model for the dictionary editorial department member in the protagonist of 'The Great Passage' (Fune wo Amu). Mr. Hiraki must have a unique 'perspective on words' cultivated through his work. Especially because it's Kojien Anniversary, we hope to create a time to share the fascination of words while listening to stories from the maker's side of 'Kojien'.
Moderating both days will be Kosuke Nakatani, a planner at kuwaku/Drawing and Manual. As someone who interacts with words in a different genre from the guests, such as copywriting and planning, he will facilitate to ensure meaningful events.
* Reserve talk event tickets from the booking site below (external site)
https://kojientalkevent.peatix.com/view
Speaker Profiles
Ai Higuchi
Born in 1989. Singer-songwriter.
Born in Kagawa, raised in Nagano, moved to Tokyo for university, and currently resides in Tokyo.
She started learning classical piano at age 2, and subsequently experienced violin, chorus, vocal music, drums, and guitar, coming into contact with various genres of music. Started her activities mainly playing keyboard and singing at age 18.
In 2016, she made her major debut with the 1st ALBUM 'Hyakurokujudo' (160 Degrees).
Her alto voice and piano melodies, which press forward with overwhelming persuasiveness, and her essentially high musicality have received high praise from both inside and outside the industry, leading to appearances at major festivals like 'FUJI ROCK FESTIVAL'.
In 2022, 'Akuma no Ko', written as the ending theme for the TV anime 'Attack on Titan' The Final Season Part 2, caused a huge response and swept charts worldwide.
Furthermore, in recent years, she has also been active as a writer, providing songs for artists like Shingo Katori, Non, Yoshino Aoyama, and ChroNoiR, and writing lyrics for numerous songs including the theme song for the anime 'Bocchi the Rock!' under the name 'Ai Higuchi', garnering attention for her songwriting abilities.
Also, in 2025, she formed the unit 'Ten Ten Taka Taka' with Afro (MOROHA), with whom she has had a deep friendship for a long time. She is in charge of Vo/Key as 'Ai-chan'.
Yumi Fuzuki
Poet. Born in Hokkaido in 1991, resides in the Tokyo metropolitan area. With poetry and essays at the core, she deeply spells out experiences of words, mind, and body.
In 2008, won the Gendaishi Techo Prize at age 16. With her 1st poetry collection 'The Inappropriate Me in an Appropriate World' (Chikuma Bunko), she won the Chuya Nakahara Prize and the Yutaka Maruyama Memorial Modern Poetry Prize as the youngest ever at age 18. In 2023, won the Saika Tomita Prize for her 4th poetry collection 'Something Like a Parallel World' (Shichosha). Latest [Text ends here]