Art exhibition in Kyoto

Miriam Cahn Exhibition: STILL LEBEN at Yuuhisai Koudoukan

Exhibition admission is free. A special tea service is available separately for an additional fee and requires a reservation.

Dates

Nov 6 (Fri) – Nov 15 (Sun)

Hours

10:00 – 17:00

Venue

Yuuhisai Koudoukan

Nearest station

Marutamachi

Admission

Free exhibition admission; special tea service ¥2,000 (tax included, reservation required)

About this event

Swiss artist Miriam Cahn presents STILL LEBEN at Yuhisai Kodo-kan, a historic cultural venue in Kyoto. The title refers to still life in German, while also suggesting a quiet existence. Watches, handbags, umbrellas, beds and cooking pots appear in works that examine the human presence hidden within everyday objects. The exhibition brings together 15 works, mainly recent paintings and drawings, alongside three earlier notebooks. Cahn's interest in the body, domestic labor and social inequality gives familiar objects a deeper significance. The historic building offers an intimate setting for engaging with her work. A separate reservation-only tea service featuring matcha and specially prepared sweets is also available.

Highlights

• 15 artworks and three earlier notebooks
• Everyday objects as the main subjects
• Themes of domestic labor and the human body
• Contemporary art inside a historic Kyoto building

Good for

Contemporary art enthusiasts and visitors interested in gender, society and Kyoto architecture.

Good to know before you go

• Miriam Cahn is an artist from Basel, Switzerland.
• Her work explores the body, social inequality and everyday labor.
• Stillleben is the German term for still life.
• A special matcha and sweets service is available by reservation.

Pochikichi's story corner

Depicting human presence without showing people

A wristwatch, an open handbag, an umbrella, a bed and a cooking pot. These ordinary objects become the subjects of Miriam Cahn's recent work. Human figures may be absent, but the actions of holding, using, cleaning and carrying objects remain strongly implied.

The Swiss artist has long addressed gender-based violence, migration and armed conflict. STILL LEBEN introduces a direction in which her attention turns toward ordinary domestic surroundings. Earlier notebooks accompany her recent paintings and drawings, highlighting the continued importance of drawing as a physical act.

The exhibition's official commentary also considers domestic labor: washing, cooking and putting things away. Such objects are not merely symbols of work. They are the things through which that work is performed, revealing the often-overlooked relationship between physical activity and everyday life.

Yuhisai Kodo-kan occupies a historic site associated with scholarship in Edo-period Kyoto. Its intimate rooms allow visitors to approach individual works closely, creating an unusual encounter between contemporary European art and Kyoto's cultural heritage.

Sources: Yuhisai Kodo-kan Official Exhibition Commentary (Japanese and English)

Long ago, around here

Was this once a center of learning and artistic exchange?

The history of Yuhisai Kodo-kan is linked to Minagawa Kien, a Kyoto Confucian scholar born in 1734. In 1806, he established a private academy called Kodo-kan on this site, where students gathered to study his distinctive approach to scholarship.

Kien was also accomplished in poetry, calligraphy and painting. The academy developed into a place where scholarship and artistic culture intersected. The present buildings and garden preserve the memory of this intellectual and cultural environment.

So when visiting Kodo-kan, look for the historical marker and pay attention to the arrangement of the buildings and garden. Beneath today's contemporary art exhibitions lies the history of a place dedicated to learning and cultural exchange.

Sources: Yuhisai Kodo-kan Official History (Japanese)

FAQ

What is Miriam Cahn Exhibition: STILL LEBEN at Yuuhisai Koudoukan?

Swiss artist Miriam Cahn presents STILL LEBEN at Yuhisai Kodo-kan, a historic cultural venue in Kyoto. The title refers to still life in German, while also suggesting a quiet existence. Watches, handbags, umbrellas, beds and cooking pots appear in works that examine the human presence hidden within everyday objects. The exhibition brings together 15 works, mainly recent paintings and drawings, alongside three earlier notebooks. Cahn's interest in the body, domestic labor and social inequality gives familiar objects a deeper significance. The historic building offers an intimate setting for engaging with her work. A separate reservation-only tea service featuring matcha and specially prepared sweets is also available.

When is Miriam Cahn Exhibition: STILL LEBEN at Yuuhisai Koudoukan?

From Nov 6 (Fri) to Nov 15 (Sun), 2026.

What are the opening hours?

10:00 – 17:00

How much does it cost?

Free exhibition admission; special tea service ¥2,000 (tax included, reservation required)

Where is it and what is the nearest station?

Yuuhisai Koudoukan. The nearest station is Marutamachi.

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