A traveling exhibition of Japanese woodblock prints will be shown at the Hockaday Museum of Art in Kalispell, with an opening reception today, Jan. 9, from 5 to 7 p.m.

Admission to the reception is free for all, and traditional Japanese foods will be served to celebrate the grand opening of “The Japanese Woodblock: An Extension of the Impermanent.” 

Hockaday executive director Liz Moss said the exhibit offers a not-to-be-missed opportunity for local art lovers.

“It’s pretty unique for a small museum in Montana to be able to offer a show of this quality,” she said. “It’s pretty exciting, and we hope people are as excited as we are.”

The show, which is sponsored by the Montana Museum and Art Gallery Directors Association, is coming to Kalispell after being featured in museums in Bozeman last spring and in Red Lodge in the month of October. It moves on to Missoula and Anaconda for two more Montana showings in 2014. 

The subject matter features Ukiyo-e, or floating world prints, from the Edo and Meiji periods and includes work by some of Japan’s most important and influential print artists, including Kuniyoshi, Hiroshige, Kunisada and Hiroshi Yoshida. The work speaks powerfully of the Japanese experience and the cultural phenomena of its time.

“Anybody who has taken any art history classes — from undergraduate to master’s — will be fascinated,” Moss said. “The last time I saw a show of this quality was at the Metropolitan [Museum of Art] in New York.”

The exhibit is comprised of original and genuine woodblock prints by 20 different artists created from the18th century through the 1960s.

“What people will be most struck by is the date range of the work — the width and breadth of the works that are collected through the centuries, how the technique continues to be explored by contemporary artists,” Moss said. 

“An Extension of the Impermanent” will remain on display at the Hockaday until Feb. 13. 

The Hockaday is located in Kalispell at 302 Second Ave. E.  It is open Tuesday through Saturday from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. 

For more information, visit www.HockadayMuseum.org or call 755-5268.