Marking 80 years since the end of the Pacific War and 40 years since Setagaya’s Peace City Declaration, the Lifestyle Design Center in Sangenjaya’s Carrot Tower invites visitors to reflect on childhood, daily life and peace across the turbulent decades of Showa Japan.
Curated by Akio Kasuga, a noted scholar of design and children’s culture and a professor emeritus at Tokyo Zokei University, the exhibition draws from his remarkable collection of more than 6,000 objects. On view are board games, picture books, magazines, toys, school supplies and everyday items spanning the pre-war, wartime and post-war years. These materials reveal how social upheaval, political control and cultural transformation were reflected in the lives of children.
The displays capture both the constraints of wartime propaganda and the post-war re-emergence of colour, creativity and hope, from early heroes of manga and animation to the optimism of rapid economic growth. By revisiting the tools of play and learning that shaped generations, the exhibition encourages visitors to consider the enduring themes of war, peace and the future of childhood in Japan.
