Unique Kyoto Souvenirs: Art Prints at Kyoto Benrido

Benrido’s office lies about a seven-minute walk west from the Marutamachi subway station, with their shop located on the ground floor.

A noren curtain featuring motifs from their art prints hangs at the entrance.

Kyoto Benrido’s seasonal noren curtain features motifs from the studio’s art prints. The design changes with the seasons. Image courtesy of Benrido.

About 200 postcard designs are displayed like an art exhibition at the Kyoto Benrido Shop.

When Benrido was founded in 1887, it was originally a book rental shop. Today, as an art printing company, they publish books and create goods for shrines, temples, and art museums across Japan, while also coming up with original items featuring works of art.

The most famous of Benrido’s products are those made using collotype, a photomechanical printing technique once practiced around the world.

However, collotype printing declined as newer, more efficient printing technologies became widespread. Today, Benrido is the only studio in the world that still practices this evocative form of color printing. The company’s artisans carefully carry on this technique while incorporating innovations, such as the use of modern chemicals.

Visitors can watch the collotype printing process through a window at Kyoto Benrido’s Collotype Gallery. Image courtesy of Benrido.

Benrido has been commissioned to use collotype printing to reproduce works registered as Cultural Properties of Japan, as the technique enables a high degree of fidelity. Collotype printing requires serious skill, as each print is individually made by hand.

Benrido created its Kishu Godai Series, a series of five postcards that change seasonally, as a way for customers to easily buy and enjoy collotype prints for themselves, or to share with family and friends.

The series features five different prints for each season, which have then been subdivided into categories such as “Spring in Full Bloom” and “High Summer.” The pieces help viewers appreciate the changing seasons, a key motif in Japanese art and aesthetics.

Collotype postcards from Kyoto Benrido’s “Start of Summer” category in the seasonal Kishu Godai Series. The postcards cost 385 yen each, tax included.

Before Benrido’s Kishu Godai Series, its collotype postcards were generally monochrome. However, the studio developed this series out of a desire to “create an opportunity for people to learn about collotype printing through these more accessible, color-printed pieces.”

This series of printed postcards can only be purchased at the Benrido Shop. They are perfect not only as a souvenir to give to others but also for writing beautiful and memorable letters to loved ones during your trip to Kyoto.

Collotype postcards from Kyoto Benrido’s Kishu Godai Series. Their soft texture is one of the distinctive features of collotype printing.

Equally irresistible is the “Kyoto-Han” postcard series, created in collaboration with Kyoto-based artists tupera tupera. “Han” is a play on words, combining the Japanese word for art print (hanga) with the Kyoto-dialect honorific (han), which means Mr. or Ms.

The series depicts Kyoto icons such as maiko (apprentice geisha/geiko) and the red gates and foxes of Fushimi Inari Shrine, as well as scenes of everyday life in the city such as coffee shops and the Kamogawa River, making these pocket-sized pieces of art popular with visitors and locals alike.

Kyoto-Han art postcards from Kyoto Benrido, featuring “Kyoto Vegetables-Han” and “Fushimi Inari-Han.” The cards cost 1,320 yen each, tax included.

Although some Kyoto-Han cards are sold at partner stores around the city, the Benrido Shop is the only location that offers the full selection. The postcards, which are perfect for display or for sending as a letter, are becoming a sought-after Kyoto souvenir.

In addition to products made using collotype printing, Benrido also offers a wide selection of stationery items with art prints, such as masking tape, stickers, and stamps featuring motifs such as the “Scrolls of Frolicking Animals” and Sakai Hōitsu’s “Flowers and Birds of the Four Seasons.”

At Benrido, “art postcard sommeliers” help customers find the perfect card.

“People like to buy new clothes and small items when the seasons change, right? I hope visitors will come to choose postcards in the same way,” says Ms. Masuo, one of the sommeliers. “The back of each postcard includes information about the artwork, which can be a door to further exploration. I’m sure visitors will enjoy it!”

Kyoto Benrido postcard sommelier Ms. Masuo (left) and shop manager Ms. Yasuno.

“Some customers tell me, ‘I bought a card as a present for a friend, but I liked it so much that I came back to buy one for myself,’ while others say, ‘I bought this for myself, but I loved it so much that I want to give one to a friend,’” says Ms. Yasuno, the manager of the Benrido Shop.

She adds that, going forward, she would like to plan letter-writing workshops and events for children — even more reasons to visit Benrido in the future!

Located near Kyoto Gyoen National Garden and just a short walk from Marutamachi Station, the Kyoto Benrido Shop is a great place to visit while exploring the area. It has something for everyone, from art enthusiasts interested in a historic printing technique to visitors searching for a one-of-a-kind, perfectly Kyoto souvenir. Why not stop by?