Collection Exhibition

Setagaya Literature Museum Collection Exhibition – Part I Uno Chiyo Exhibition: 30 Years After Her Passing
—The Early Years of Love and Creativity—
Saturday, April 18 – Sunday, September 6, 2026

Concurrent Exhibition: Muttoni Collection
*Admission may be limited during busy periods.

Venue
1st Floor Exhibition Room, Setagaya Literature Museum

Opening hours
10:00 am - 6:00 pm
*Exhibition admission and the museum shop are open until 5:30 p.m.

Closed
Mondays (Or the next non-holiday weekday if Monday is a holiday.)

Special Cooperation
Uno Chiyo Co., Ltd.

Organizer
Setagaya City / Setagaya Arts Foundation, Setagaya Literature Museum

Supporter
Setagaya City Board of Education

Exhibition Overview

Chiyo Uno (1897–1996) was the author of numerous masterpieces—including Iro Zange, Ohan, and Ikite Iku Watashi—that continue to serve as guideposts for life today.

In her youth, she lived with the painter Seiji Togo in an elegant Le Corbusier-inspired house equipped with an artist's studio in Awashima, Setagaya. Her career as a writer flourished through her many romances with figures such as Shiro Ozaki, Seiji Togo, and Takeo Kitahara, as well as her vibrant circle of friends, which included leading painters, poets, critics, and other cultural figures. This exhibition presents newly donated materials from her personal collection, gifted to the Setagaya Literature Museum in 2023. The exhibition is divided into two parts, which will be open to the public throughout the year.

Part I focuses on materials from her childhood in Iwakuni through to approximately 50 years of age, when the serialization of Ohan began.

The exhibition features a rich variety of materials, including the handwritten manuscript of Iro Zange , letters she received from painter Seiji Togo, a diary kept during a trip to China with Takeo Kitahara, Japan's first fashion magazine Style, which achieved record-breaking sales, as well as kimonos she designed herself. Together, these works provide a comprehensive overview of the materials that form the centerpiece of the Setagaya Literature Museum’s newest collection.

Through her emergence as a novelist as well as her pioneering attire and lifestyle, the exhibition offers a glimpse into the life of young Uno Chiyo, who lived for love and creativity. We invite you to discover the world of Chiyo Uno—a woman who lived with strength, elegance, and resilience.