Sake. Rockstars. Samurai.
01.10.2025 - 07.10.2025
The fifth Sake Week will take place in Berlin from October 1 to 7.
The Samurai Museum Berlin serves as the new anchor venue for the event and will present special sake collaborations with renowned personalities in a dedicated exhibition.
Although sake is gaining more recognition in Germany’s top restaurants, it still remains a niche product. Internationally, however, it enjoys far greater popularity and is more frequently found in consumers’ shopping baskets—for instance, in the US and the UK.
“One reason for this could be that some very well-known figures from the worlds of film, music, and sports have launched their own sake brands or collaborations,” explains Alexander van Hessen, president of the organizing association Sake Embassy Germany e.V.
Indeed, celebrities such as the rock bands Foo Fighters, Iron Maiden, and Phoenix, celebrity chef Nobu Matsuhisa—who co-founded the Nobu restaurant chain with Robert De Niro—as well as Cate Blanchett, Brooklyn Beckham, Pharrell Williams, and Richie Hawtin, have all committed themselves to sake.
A curated selection of exclusive sakes from these collaborations—some of which are no longer commercially available—will be showcased at the Samurai Museum exhibition during the week.
In addition, sake enthusiasts and professionals can look forward to numerous events throughout Sake Week. The program will open on October 1, World Sake Day, with an exclusive trade-only event at the Samurai Museum.
A collaboration with the Sake Embassy Germany
Jonas Hödicke
11.09.2025 - 11.01.2026
Unfamiliar in the City
Jonas Hödicke presents his latest exhibition, which takes visitors on a fascinating journey between the worlds of Berlin and Japan. Known for his constant search for new forms of expression, the artist takes visitors on a journey of discovery that combines traditional Japanese elements with urban modernity.
Hödicke has been fascinated by Japan since childhood—its samurai swords, brave warriors, and colorful festivals, but also its mysterious geishas. Inspired by masterpieces such as those of the legendary Katsushika Hokusai, he creates a unique symbiosis between his artistic language and Japan’s cultural diversity.
“Fremd in der Stadt” (Stranger in the City) is a bold and unique exhibition that opens up a new perspective on Japanese martial arts and urban aesthetics in Berlin. Hödicke invites you to experience this extraordinary encounter—a fusion that breaks traditional boundaries and shows art in a completely new light.
The artist Jonas Hödicke: Born in the shadow of the Wall
Jonas Hödicke, son of Berlin painter Professor Karl Horst Hödicke, grew up in a city that was still divided by borders. The Wall not only shaped the cityscape, but also his view of the world. In interviews, he recalls that he never had much time for authority figures. Teachers, trainers, bosses—none of them lasted long, and he couldn’t stand them either. In the end, he had no choice but to go his own way, even though he resisted art for a long time.
He wanted to live his own life without constantly being compared to his father’s work. Nevertheless, art was a natural part of his environment – the studios, the smell of paint, the constant rustling of paper.
“I get bored so quickly,” he once said to his wife when discussing his restless nature and desire to try new things. This interplay of curiosity and impatience is reflected in his work: light and shadow, movement and stillness, Berlin between raw asphalt and poetic glimmer.
His childhood was not always easy—he rubbed people the wrong way, got into fights, and learned early on to stand his ground.
At the same time, he fell in love with the aesthetics and discipline of the samurai,
fascinated by the Japanese master Hokusai. These Far Eastern influences have flowed like quiet currents into his Berlin cityscapes – where urban energy meets the precision of ancient warriors.
The exhibition opens on September 10, 2025, at the Samurai Museum Berlin, where this dialogue between East and West, between street life and Japanese art tradition, will be on display.
For Jonas Hödicke, this is not a departure from Berlin, but an expansion of his perspective – and perhaps the clearest expression of his own signature style to date.
Text: Jennifer Hödicke
A collaboration between the Samurai Museum Berlin and Galerie Mond Fine Arts
Japanese Tea Ceremony
11.10.2025 | 14:00 - 16:00
This unique cultural experience takes place in the museum’s traditional tea house, offering guests the chance to immerse themselves in the serene, timeless ritual of Chanoyu, the Japanese tea gathering.
After a successful debut last year, this captivating series invites you to discover the profound artistry and philosophy behind the Japanese tea. Led by the esteemed Atsuko Sōto Isoyama-Osiander, a master of the Chado Urasenke School in Kyoto, this gathering offers an authentic journey into Japanese culture.
Atsuko dedicated 13 years to perfecting her craft in Kyoto and now shares her expertise as a tea master and consultant in Berlin. She firmly believes that “tea is the elixir of life.”
Cost: Museum ticket & Donation per person € 5 – 10
First-come-first-serve. Reservations not possible.