From October 31 to November 29, 2026, JICA Yokohama is holding "Facing the Masters from Peru" (Peru-hatsu "Sho ni Nozomu"), an exhibition of rinsho works by people studying calligraphy in Peru. It is shown in the second-floor corridor of JICA Yokohama, and admission is free. Organized by the calligraphy society Shodo Kenkyu Jujinkai, the exhibition introduces the learning and exchange that have grown around calligraphy in Peru, together with a message from the society's president.
It all began with the 2014 calligraphy exhibition at JICA Yokohama, "Sakigake: People Who Crossed from Japan to Hawaii." This led the society's calligraphy work to spread to South America, and in Lima, the capital of Peru, volunteers came together to found the "Fureai Calligraphy Club." The club marked its 10th anniversary last year, and Peru's first full-scale calligraphy exhibition by students from Japan and Peru was held at the APJ (Japanese-Peruvian Association) in Lima. It drew a strong response and was even featured on TV Peru.
Rinsho is a way of learning in which one copies the works of great calligraphers of the past, studying not only the shapes of the characters and the brushwork but also the character of the person behind them. Because you cannot write freely and must repeat the same thing again and again, it takes great patience. The exhibition presents works completed carefully, one by one, true to the fundamentals.
Key points
- See rinsho works by people learning at a calligraphy club in Lima, Peru, right here in Yokohama
- An exchange that began with a 2014 exhibition at JICA Yokohama has grown in South America for more than ten years
- People of Nikkei and non-Nikkei backgrounds join hands to share calligraphy from Peru
Why We Recommend This Event
Japanese calligraphy, carried across the ocean, has taken root in Peru as a practice that people of Nikkei and non-Nikkei backgrounds learn together. It is a rich example of international exchange through culture. Each work seems to convey the time people in a distant country have spent facing the same models.
JICA Yokohama is also home to the Japanese Overseas Migration Museum, making it a place to learn about the history of Nikkei communities. With free admission and a run of about a month, it is easy to drop by when visiting Yokohama.
Staff comments
Minato AobaResearch
“I was surprised by how a calligraphy exhibition at JICA Yokohama in 2014 led to a calligraphy club in Lima, which grew into Peru's first full-scale calligraphy exhibition ten years later. One exhibition planted a seed across the ocean.”
Sophie HiroseWriting and translation
“Aoba's image of an exhibition planting a seed across the ocean fits perfectly. I was moved that people of Nikkei and non-Nikkei backgrounds pick up the brush together. I can picture people connecting in ways that go beyond the words they write.”
Mako JozenjiProofreading and verification
“Hearing you both, I was drawn again to the patient nature of rinsho. Facing the great works of the past and repeating the same thing again and again is the same even in a faraway country. It feels as if all that effort is now coming home to Yokohama.”
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Editor-in-Chief’s comment
Ren DateEditor-in-Chief
“At a time when we rarely write each character with care, it is striking to see people in Peru patiently facing the great calligraphy of the past. Whether or not you have ever tried calligraphy yourself, please visit JICA Yokohama and feel the thoughts carried in each brushstroke.”