An art form that millions of people have seen but hardly ever consciously notice: the painted backdrops of Japanese animated films. From the 1950s through the 2000s, this technique was used to create atmospheric landscapes, cities, and interiors that, in the finished film, are usually visible for only a few seconds behind the animated characters. Painted with poster paint on paper, they were originally purely functional art for the camera and, for a long time, were not intended to be viewed as standalone works of art.
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YAMAMOTO
YAMAMOTO
Yet these images often shape a film’s atmosphere just as strongly as the characters, plot, or music. In Japan, the artists behind these visual worlds are now receiving widespread recognition and are being honored with museum retrospectives. In Europe, however, the fascinating art of anime backgrounds is only gradually being discovered.
One of the key figures driving this development is media art expert, gallerist, and curator Stefan Riekeles, who was among the first in Europe to present background painting as a genre in its own right. His new exhibition in Berlin is dedicated to the work of Japanese art director Nizō Yamamoto (1953–2023).
With his richly detailed and atmospheric visual worlds, Yamamoto left his mark on numerous anime classics and worked on Studio Ghibli films such as “Princess Mononoke” and “Grave of the Fireflies,” among others.
The exhibition opens on October 3, 2026, at the Tchoban Foundation in Berlin and offers the opportunity to discover up close a side of Japanese animation art that has often been overlooked.
