Legendary Japanese animator Hayao Miyazaki famously said: “The dignity of an animated film is determined by its background art.”
Heads up, Studio Ghibli fans! If you’ve been to the famed animation studio’s unforgettable museum in Mitaka, Tokyo—or you’ve been planning to—we have some great news for you!
The background art from its Oscar-winning film The Boy and the Heron (Kimitachi wa Do Ikiru ka?/ literally, How Do You Live?) is the focus of a special exhibition showing at the Ghibli Museum.
Titled “The Boy and the Heron Part 3: Background Art,” the exhibit showcases 120 hand-drawn art works from the film directed by legendary Japanese animator Hayao Miyazaki. The exhibit is a nod to the animation studio’s unmatched prowess in hand-drawn animation.
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A statement from the museum beautifully summarizes the theme of the exhibit: “If animation (drawing) is what breathes life into characters, background art is what creates the world in which those characters live.”
The statement mentions how usage of digital tools has become increasingly more common in recent years, but “when you draw by hand with paint on paper, you can never draw the exact same thing twice.” It adds: “When you think about these things, you realize just how unique background art is in the animation process.”
Miyazaki himself has always thought highly of hand-drawn background art. He even famously said: “The dignity of an animated film is determined by its background art.”
The exhibit will bring visitors to a world of light, shadow, and rich hues created by the intermingling of handicrafts, paper, paint, and water—”a world created by hand-drawn background art.”
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It’s remarkable how the breathtaking background art of The Boy and the Heron, which won Best Animated Feature in the 94th Oscars, was created by only 12 talented artists. The exhibit honors their work, and is described as a “crystallization of their skill and artistry.”
The Boy and the Heron is a fantasy adventure in which a boy named Mahito, whose mother died during World War II, encounters a mysterious grey heron who leads him to a world where life and death are blended into one.
It is the second film from Studio Ghibli to have won an Academy Award, the first being Spirited Away (2001). It also won at the Annie Awards, the Golden Globes, and the BAFTA for the same category. It has grossed US$294.2 million worldwide, making it the fifth highest-grossing Japanese film of all time.
“I want visitors to enjoy the drawings by the art staff who were immersed in the world of the work and experience the feeling of being drawn into the story,” says museum director Kazuki Anzai.
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The first of the two-part exhibition opened last Saturday, November 23, and runs until May 2025, while the second half is expected to be from May to November 2025. About half of the 120 exhibits will be replaced in the second part.
Advance reservations are required. Tickets are at ¥1,000 for adults, ¥700 for junior high and high school students, ¥400 for elementary school students and ¥100 for children aged 4 and above. You can reserve your tickets at the official Studio Ghibli website.
The Studio Ghibli Museum is located at 1 Chome-1-83 Shimorenjaku, Mitaka, Tokyo. Museum hours are from 10 am to 6pm, Wednesday to Monday. The museum is closed on Tuesdays.
