Kitamura Seibo Sculpture Garden
You can see the works of sculptor Seibo Kitamura outdoors and in Sculpture Museum A, B, and Atelier Hall (approximately 200 pieces are on display at any given time; exhibits within the hall are subject to change).
Photography is not permitted inside Sculpture Museum A and B, or the Atelier Hall. However, photography is permitted for outdoor sculptures.
About Sculpture Museum
About Sculpture Museum
Highlights of the Sculpture Garden
Inokashira Park Zoo has a life-size plaster mold of the Nagasaki Peace Memorial Statue, widely known as Nishibo's masterpiece. The mold for casting the bronze Peace Memorial Statue was created in an atelier here at Inokashira Park Zoo.
In the autumn of 1950, Seibo was commissioned by Nagasaki City to create the Peace Memorial Statue, and began planning and creating prototypes in his studio in Kita Ward, where he lived at the time. As a large space was required to create a life-size prototype measuring 9.7 meters in height, he negotiated with the Tokyo Metropolitan Government, and in 1953, his studio (now the Atelier Hall) was built on land adjacent to Inokashira Park Zoo. This is where he completed the prototype. At the Sculpture Garden, visitors can enjoy a variety of sculptures by sculptor Kitamura Seibo, centered around the "Peace Memorial Statue Life-Size Plaster Prototype."
The beginnings and present of the sculpture garden
After the Peace Memorial Statue was completed, the original model and the collection of works stored by Seibo were donated to the Tokyo Metropolitan Government in 1958, laying the foundation for the current sculpture garden. With subsequent donations, the Seibo collection now includes over 500 pieces, including bronze and other cast statues, plaster prototypes, and a large collection of calligraphy, paintings, drawings, and more.
You can see his works in three buildings: Hall A, which mainly displays the original Peace Memorial Statue and post-war works; Hall B, which displays works from the time when Nishibo studied sculpture, including pre-war and wartime works; and Atelier Hall, where the Peace Memorial Statue was created. You can also see over 30 works outdoors.
Sculptor Seibo Kitamura
He was born in Nagasaki Prefecture in 1884 (Meiji 17) and died in 1987 (Showa 62). His representative works include the Peace Memorial Statue in Nagasaki Peace Park and Itagaki Taisuke in the National Diet Building, and he has many other statues installed throughout Japan. Before the war, he excelled in works that expressed the beauty of male muscles and statues of heroic soldiers on horseback. After creating the Peace Memorial Statue, he began creating works with themes of peace and freedom, and continued creating until his death at the age of 102. He was one of the leading sculptors of the Showa era, and was a recipient of the Order of Culture, the Medal with Dark Blue Ribbon, and a Person of Cultural Merit.
