Leica’s 100 Years: A Century of Witnessing the World – Spiral Garden (2025)

My impressions after viewing “Leica’s 100 Years: A Century of Witnessing the World,” held at Spiral Garden in Aoyama, Tokyo in October 2025.

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Table of contents

• 100 Years of Leica: A Century of Witnessing the World – Spiral Garden
  1. Overview
  2. Review
  3. Summary
• Reference links

100 Years of Leica: A Century of Witnessing the World – Spiral Garden

Overview

• Exhibition: Leica’s 100 Years: A Century of Witnessing the World
• Date: October 18–26, 2025
• Location: Spiral Garden (Aoyama, Tokyo)

Review

I recently visited “100 Years of Leica: A Century of Witnessing the World, Spiral Garden,” held at Spiral Garden in Aoyama, Tokyo. The exhibition requires reservations, and even though it was on a weekday, admission was free, so reservations were filled up at most times, demonstrating the enduring popularity of Leica in Japan.

The straight section of the spiral exhibition space near the entrance featured a display of vintage prints taken with Leica on the right wall.

In the center was a case displaying historical Leica cameras, such as the Leica M2 used by Kyoichi Sawada, as well as drawings and other materials. The photo below shows the “LEICA M6 prototype sent to Queen Elizabeth” on the left and the “LEICA M for (RED)” on the right.

Works by Shoji Ueda and Masaharu Fukuyama were on display on the left wall, and photography was prohibited here.

A LEICA SL3-S was regularly taking time-lapse photos of the venue halfway between the aisle and the center stage.

Going through the straight section, the circular atrium wall, a symbol of the spiral, is decorated with the 100th anniversary logo and a huge panel hanging from it.

The hall section has a circular exhibition space, the walls of which are decorated with a Leica timeline.
Leica products that symbolize the era are displayed around the periphery of the exhibition space, with the Leica Type 1 on display in the center of the circle.

The camera that caught my eye the most in the exhibition space was the LEICA S1. This camera is the first in the Leica S series, but unlike the current LEICA S series, it uses a Leica M mount and the same parts for the viewfinder as the LEICA R8 and R9.
It is an odd-looking camera, and requires you to hold it in both arms and look through the viewfinder at an angle from above, which makes for a mysterious shooting style, and I’m very curious to see what it feels like to actually use it.

There was also a cute Leica bear in the window display, along with other products such as the LEICA M9 Titanium, LEICA M7 Titanium, and the LEICA Q Limited Edition.

Summary

This was a rare opportunity to get a panoramic view of Leica’s history and see rare Leica products firsthand.

In order to keep my luggage light, I went with just a Canon EOS 7D and a Leica R Vario Elmar 21-35mm lens, but since many visitors to the exhibition were carrying LEICA Q and M series cameras, I wish I had brought my LEICA S typ007, of which there are probably few still in working order.

Leica often holds commemorative events, so I’d like to go see them when I get the chance.

Reference links

• LEICA・Official page
• The history of the Leica I・Official page
• Spiral Garden・Official page
• LEICA S typ007・Shige’s hobby
• LEICA VARIO ELMAR 21-35mm・Shige’s hobby
• CANON EOS 7D・Shige’s hobby

Photo Equipment

• CANON EOS 7D +LEICA VARIO ELMAR 21mm -35mm ASPH.

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Update history

• 2025.11.25