History of Architecture in Anime at the House of Illustration

The Japan Nakama team went down to Granary Square in Kings Cross this week to check out the acclaimed House of Illustration exhibition Anime Architecture: Backgrounds of Japan.

Remember the Ghost in the Shell? Remember Patlabor? Well, this exhibition features over 100 beautifully composed watercolours, graphics and prints that will send you back down memory lane, addressing recurring themes of neo-tech, dystopia, greyscale and the metropolis. It’s easy to see how these classics inspired films like The Matrix and Avatar.

“It has been one of the most popular events at House of Illustration” Milly

The incredible realism that  Oshii, Ogura, and Takeuchi illustrate in their dystopian worlds is haunting, covering all our cosmopolitan fears of ever-growing faceless cities and the robotic march towards AI.

The Anime architecture exhibition charts the development of the dystopian through the Anime medium and the trends emerge as you move through the exhibit. At House of Illustration, you’ll discover the development of some of the most influential Anime productions in the last several decades and trace what inspired them to conceive these wonderful fictitious cityscapes.

A must for Anime, Design, and Architecture enthusiasts! The exhibition ends on the 10th of September so be sure to catch it this weekend before it ends! Tickets are on sale via the ‘Anime Architecture: Background of Japan’ page or at the exhibition itself.