Japan House: Everything you need to know about Kensington’s new cultural centre

Londoners looking for a new favourite cultural hotspot need look no further than Japan House, which opens in Kensington today.

The venue, described as “a creative crossroads for Japan and the UK”, is an exhibition-led space spread across three floors of an Art Deco building on Kensington High Street.

London is the third city to get a satellite site: sao Paulo and Los Angeles already have their own Japan House venues.

The aim of the building is to provide the capital with a chance to learn more about Japanese culture through exhibitions, workshops, talks, shopping and food. Artists, architects, designers, performers, musicians and chefs from the country will all come under the spotlight as part of a drive to amplify Japanese culture and increase appreciation of it.

The layout of the building is designed to provide maximum space for peace and tranquility and entry is totally free - what more could you ask for? If you’re already ready to hotfoot it down, here’s everything you need to know about W8’s new addition.

There’s a rolling programme of exhibitions

The bottom floor is the venue’s dedicated exhibition space, an expansive, airy room of possibility. The opening show is Sou Fujimoto’s Futures of the Future, which you can also see in pop-up spaces on the ground floor and in the building’s windows. It puts the spotlight on Fujimoto’s current architecture projects and the ways in which he uses everyday objects as inspiration for designs.

Between now and January there will be four exhibitions in the space. Forthcoming shows will explore metal work, paper sculptures and technology.

It features a library with a difference

The ground floor has its own library, which is the perfect spot to grab a moment of quiet. Books are arranged differently thanks to Yoshitaka Haba’s innovative approach termed ‘editorial curation’; books are arranged by theme rather than alphabetically. The library is also an exhibition space, with the first show, Nature of Japan, featuring original photography by leading photographer Risaku Suzuki.

The ground floor of Japan House
Lee Mawdsley

You can learn new skills

A rolling programme of workshops gives visitors a chance to learn more about the Japanese way of life and get creative with new skills. One of the first workshops on offer will teach you how to look after your bonsai tree.

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There’s some exciting creative talent on board

Kenya Hara will be the Chief Creative Director for Japan House - you may already know him as the art director of Muji. And if you want to grab a bite to eat at the top floor restaurant, you’ll be in good hands: celebrated Japanese chef Shimizu Akira is leading the kitchen.

Japan House opens today at 101-111 Kensington High Street. Find out more at japanhouselondon.uk