#70 Looking back: 10 Years of IBASHO

We're excited to celebrate a big milestone at IBASHO: 10 years of sharing the beauty of Japanese photography. To mark this special moment, we're hosting a group exhibition  “Looking Back: 10 Years of IBASHO”, at our gallery in Antwerp. The exhibition will open to the public on Sunday, 23 March, from 14:00 to 18:00.

It all started in 2014 when we, Martijn van Pieterson and Annemarie Zethof, made the move from London to Antwerp. We found a new home in Tolstraat, and with that, our dream of opening a gallery for Japanese photography could be realised. We wanted IBASHO to be a place that felt relaxed and welcoming—a space where people could truly feel at home, just as the name suggests. "Ibasho" means in Japanese "a place where you can be yourself."

On 26 March 2015, we opened the doors of our home and gallery for our very first exhibition, exhibiting works from our personal collection that we had gathered over the years as private collectors. 

Now, 10 years later, we’re incredibly proud of what we've built. IBASHO has become a real home for Japanese photographers, and it’s grown into a community of people who share our passion for Japanese photography. To us, IBASHO has never been just a career—it’s been a way of life, and we're excited to keep sharing that with you for as long as we can.

For this anniversary exhibition, we’ve put together a collection that highlights the heart and history of the gallery. It includes works from IBASHO artists or pieces from our collection that have a special place in our hearts—whether because of the story behind them, the image itself, or the emotions they stir in us.