Yokosuka Museum of Art will mark its reopening with a large exhibition devoted to artist Shimada Shozo, presenting the museum’s entire holdings of his work for the first time. The exhibition, titled 'Shimada Shozo: The Human Form in Space, the Human Form in Everyday Life', runs from 5 September to 3 November 2026 at the museum in Yokosuka, Japan.
The museum describes the show as a reopening project and positions it as the first major offering after the institution resumes operations. The exhibition is also framed as a memorial project for the 10th anniversary of Shimada’s death in 2026. According to the museum, the display will bring together around 130 works in its collection, all shown in full for the first time.
Shimada Shozo, born in Yokosuka in 1933, was a Western-style painter with strong ties to the city. He served as the first director of Yokosuka Museum of Art from 2007 to 2011, and was elected a member of the Japan Art Academy in 1999. He was also named a Person of Cultural Merit in 2004. The museum says Shimada worked to “translate” Cubism, which emerged in France, into Japanese visual language, developing a distinctive figural mode in which geometric spatial composition and scenes from daily life coexist.
That figural approach is central to the museum’s framing of Shimada’s practice. The exhibition subtitle, 'The Human Form in Space, the Human Form in Everyday Life', points to his interest in the relation between bodies, interiors and ordinary settings. The museum identifies this body of work through the term 'katachibito', used to describe his original treatment of human figures within structured pictorial space.
The exhibition will not be limited to paintings. Yokosuka Museum of Art says the presentation will include oil paintings of Yokosuka, drawings made in Paris, print works, and personal tools such as Shimada’s easel and palette. The museum has also highlighted a selection of works from its collection, including 'Minato Yokosuka' from 2007, 'Neurose' from 1957, 'Suzanna no Heya' from 1967, 'Wanage' from 1977, 'Toritachi no Area' from 1995, 'Kaidan no Composition' from 2013 and 'Paris Montmartre A' from 1968.
The museum’s collection of Shimada works expanded from 75 pieces donated by the artist in 2001, then through purchases and further gifts from his family and other related parties after his death. The current total stands at around 130 works, forming the basis for the full-collection presentation. During the exhibition period, gallery-talk volunteers will also provide printed highlights on the museum floor.
'Yokosuka Museum of Art Collection Exhibition: Shimada Shozo' is scheduled alongside the museum’s regular collection displays, and admission information listed by the museum states that the ticket also covers the collection exhibition and the Taniuchi Rokuro Museum. The museum lists opening hours as 10:00 to 18:00, with closure on 7 September, 5 October and 2 November 2026. General admission is 1,200 yen, with reduced prices for high school and university students and visitors aged 65 and over, while junior high school students and younger are admitted free.
