Bunkaya Zakkaten Exhibition

Leopard-print crockery, Chairman Mao memorabilia – there was no telling exactly what you might come across at Bunkaya Zakkaten, a cluttered backstreet bazaar that started life in Shibuya in 1974 and was a fixture on the Harajuku scene for over thirty years until closing for good early last year. Remembering this pioneer of zakka (random sundries and knickknacks) culture, Bunkaya Zakkaten owner Yoshitaro Hasegawa now puts on a revival exhibit in Kanda. Having invited around 100 creatives from designers and artists to fortune-tellers, surfers and actors to ponder the meaning and value of zakka, Hasegawa presents an eclectic array of paraphernalia picked out by his collaborators, recreating the quirky chaos of his old store for one month only.