AN EXHIBITION by London-based Japanese artists has opened in the North-East.

On The Threshold II features work by nine Japanese artists who all studied at London art colleges and explores how their art is sometimes more strongly influenced by their origins and sometimes reflects the culture of their new home.

Curated by Miyoko McGregor Yamashita, who is also a contributor to the display, it opened at Durham University’s Oriental Museum in January and runs until Thursday, May 19, in one gallery and around the museum’s atrium.

The display, supported by Ustinov College, comes as the cultural links between the North-East and Japan are being celebrated, with car manufacturer Nissan marking 30 years since it opened its plant at Washington.

It was recently visited by a delegation of Japanese women whose husbands work at Nissan and fellow manufacturing giant Hitachi.

Mrs McGregor Yamashita said it had been very well received to date.

“We have a very long relationship between the North-East and Japan and I wanted to bring Japanese contemporary art to the region to deepen our mutual understanding,” she added.

The exhibition follows On The Threshold I, held at the Oriental Museum and Teikyo University in Durham in November.

Other than the curator, the contributing artists are: Masakatsu Kondo, Hiroki Yamamoto, Naoya Inose, Noe Iwai, Tamao Narukawa, Haruki Okuyama, Yumi Otaka and Moemi Takano.

Entry costs £1.50 for adults, 75p for children and over 60s and is free for under-fives. For details, visit dur.ac.uk/oriental.museum