14 Exhibitions in Tokyo Recommended by Naomi_N for October–December 2022

My regular series introducing art museums and galleries, which also serves as a personal memo.
I am sharing my personal recommendations for exhibitions in Tokyo that I plan to visit, along with a brief note on why I want to go.

It’s finally here! Autumn for the arts!!!
I hope this serves as a helpful reference for your own exhibition visits.

You can read my previous articles in this magazine. Reviews of exhibitions I have visited are summarized in my audio series 'Listening to Museum & Gallery Reviews' and on Instagram, and are also linked in these articles. Please check them out!!!

Vallotton: Black and White

Location: Mitsubishi Ichigokan Museum (Marunouchi, Tokyo)
Dates: October 29 (Sat) – January 29, 2023 (Sun)
★Advance booking is likely recommended
★Touring schedule: None

It is no exaggeration to say that this is the exhibition I have been looking forward to most this autumn/winter—or even in all of 2022. It’s Vallotton.

I saw this exhibition at the Mitsubishi Ichigokan Museum in 2014 and was captivated by the artist at first sight.
You can read the exhibition outline (PDF) from that time here.
You can find the newsletter featuring a conversation between the former museum director and film director Yoji Yamada here.

Perhaps there are still many people who might ask, 'Who is that?'
Please take this opportunity to go and see his work. It is very stylish, surreal, and mysterious. It’s wonderful. Moreover, it fits the atmosphere of the Mitsubishi Ichigokan perfectly. I am really looking forward to it.

Yanagi Soetsu and Korean Crafts: Guided by the Beauty of Ceramics

Location: The Japan Folk Crafts Museum (Komaba-todaimae, Tokyo)
Dates: September 1 (Thu) – November 23 (Wed, Holiday)
★Advance booking not required
★Touring schedule: None

In his youth, Yanagi Soetsu was captivated only by Western art, but his encounter with Korean ceramics was what first opened his eyes to the beauty of 'mingei' (folk crafts).
I really want to visit this exhibition, which focuses on Korean ceramics and crafts that so fascinated him that he wrote numerous essays and even organized exhibitions on-site.

Speaking of the Folk Crafts Museum, the West Building where Yanagi Soetsu lived is also open to the public on limited dates and times. If it’s an open day, you can see it for free with your museum ticket, so please do!!!

Photo Exhibition: My First Time with Shigeo Gocho.

Location: Hobonichi Nichiyobi (8F, Shibuya PARCO, Tokyo)
Dates: October 7 (Fri) – November 13 (Sun)
★Advance booking not required
★Touring schedule: None

Do you know the photographer Shigeo Gocho?
I saw his work at the Tokyo Photographic Art Museum just the other day and became very interested in him as an artist.

That’s right, the admission bonus includes a booklet with a newly drawn manga by Radio Wada!
It’s precious. It’s a valuable opportunity in many ways.

'Hobonichi Nichiyobi' is, as the name suggests, a gallery space operated by Hobonichi.
I introduced it in these articles before.

It is located on the 8th floor of Shibuya PARCO, on the same floor as the PARCO Theater.
Also, I’m grateful that it’s open until 8:00 PM every day! It’s usually quite empty on weekdays, and Shibuya itself is less crowded, making it a very accessible art space, so please stop by on your way home from work.

By the way, on the 2nd floor of the same PARCO, there is the Bijutsu Techo gallery space, OIL by Bijutsu Techo Gallery (admission free), and on the 4th floor, there is the PARCO MUSEUM TOKYO, so please feel free to visit both.

Rinko Kawauchi Exhibition: 'M/E: Infinite Sequences on a Sphere'

Venue: Tokyo Opera City Art Gallery (Hatsudai, Tokyo)
Dates: October 8 (Sat) - December 18 (Wed)
★No advance reservation required
★No tour scheduled

Speaking of photography, next up is Rinko Kawauchi.
I simply love Kawauchi's photography, so I definitely want to go!!!
The venue is the high-ceilinged Opera City, and apparently, architect Hideyuki Nakayama is handling the spatial design. I am really looking forward to the space where the two of them resonate.

The True Nature of Eames

Venue: Matsuya Ginza Gallery (Ginza, Tokyo)
Dates: September 14 (Wed) - November 7 (Mon)
★No advance reservation required
★No tour scheduled

On the 7th floor of Matsuya Ginza, there is a gallery and shop managed by the members of the Japan Design Committee, which I visit regularly.

The gallery space is by no means large, but they always hold brilliant special exhibitions that you can enjoy for free.

The special exhibition currently being held here is Eames. And it was curated by Haruka Misawa of the Nippon Design Center.

Huh? Who is that?
...This is the most recent special exhibition that Misawa-san worked on.

Are you starting to want to go see it?

Matsuya Ginza is also open until 8:00 PM. You can view the exhibits very leisurely on weekday mornings or at night, so please do stop by on your way home from work.

Man Ray's Objects: Everyday is a Good Day | Beloved Things
&
Collection Highlight: Joseph Cornell - Welcoming New Acquisitions

Venue: DIC Kawamura Memorial Museum of Art (Sakura City, Chiba Prefecture)
Dates: October 8 (Sat) - January 15, 2023 (Sun)
★No advance reservation required
★No tour scheduled

I apologize that this is not in Tokyo, but there is a special exhibition I really want to introduce...
It is a special exhibition featuring my beloved Man Ray and Joseph Cornell, held at my favorite Kawamura Memorial Museum of Art. I am looking forward to it.

The problem is, when to go... The time when the autumn leaves are beautiful seems nice, but the garden in midwinter also seems to have a certain charm... I am torn.

And, although it may be self-promotion, please also refer to this article when you go out 🚌

Taro Okamoto Exhibition

Venue: Tokyo Metropolitan Art Museum (Ueno, Tokyo)
Dates: October 18 (Tue) - December 28 (Wed)
★No advance reservation required?
★Traveling from the Nakanoshima Museum of Art, Osaka

It's finally coming to Tokyo! The much-talked-about special exhibition of Taro-san!!! I've been looking forward to this so much.

If we're talking about large-scale special exhibitions held in Tokyo, hasn't it been since the 2011 MOMAT exhibition? I actually went to that exhibition too, and I remember very well how I was energized by Taro-san's intense passion.

Once this starts, I'm sure the Taro Okamoto Memorial Museum in Aoyama, Tokyo, and the Taro Okamoto Museum of Art in Kawasaki will also get busy. I'm looking forward to it.

By the way... I personally recommend the audio guide. Believe it or not, my favorite actor, Sadao Abe, has been cast for it...!!!
You can listen to it right now on the audio guide app "Kiku Bijutsu," so for those of you waiting for the Tokyo exhibition, please use it for preparation.

The Connecting Rinpa Spirit: Sekka Kamisaka

Venue: Panasonic Shiodome Museum of Art (Shiodome, Tokyo)
Dates: October 29 (Sat) - December 18 (Sun) *Exhibits will be rotated
★Advance reservation required only on weekends and holidays
★No tour scheduled

Sekka Kamisaka (1866-1942) was a designer and painter who was active mainly in Kyoto from the Meiji to the Showa period.

Hon'ami Koetsu and Tawaraya Sotatsu, the brothers Ogata Korin and Ogata Kenzan, Sakai Hoitsu, and Suzuki Kiitsu.
Artists who were fascinated by and admired the beauty of their predecessors from the early Edo period eventually came to be called the "Rinpa" school.
Sekka Kamisaka was an artist who followed in that tradition and engaged in a wide range of creative activities. I especially love Sekka-san's "yuru-kawa" (loosely cute) works, such as dogs, sparrows, and goldfish, which are very humorous and soothing.

The Hosomi Museum in Kyoto holds many of his works, and since this is a special exhibition supervised by the Hosomi Museum, I think it's a rare opportunity to see a collection of his works in Tokyo. I'm really looking forward to it.

Christian Dior: Designer of Dreams

Venue: Museum of Contemporary Art Tokyo (Kiyosumi-shirakawa, Tokyo)
Dates: From December *Subject to change

Although I immediately made a note of it when the first news of the exhibition was announced, the detailed schedule and content are still a secret...

At this rate, I wonder if it will be next year. For now, I definitely plan to go see it. The Dior exhibition. I saw it in Ginza a long time ago, and it was wonderful. It was the definition of elegance.

I'm looking forward to seeing how that space at the Museum of Contemporary Art, which has held many exhibitions related to fashion design such as Eiko Ishioka, Sayoko Yamaguchi, and Minä Perhonen, will be transformed...

★Postscript: I went on 1/18 (Wed)

The World of Mari Yamazaki

Venue: Tokyo Zokei University Art Museum (Hachioji, Tokyo)
Dates: October 25 (Tue) – November 26 (Sat)
★No advance reservation required
★No tour scheduled

Yes, that Mari Yamazaki, the author of "Thermae Romae"!

I first learned about this exhibition on "Tatsuro Yamashita's Sunday Songbook," a radio program I have been listening to for a quarter of a century.

Why Tatsuro and Mari Yamazaki? Well...the cover of Tatsuro's latest album is a portrait painted by Mari Yamazakiit was.

When Tatsuro was thinking about what to do for the cover design, he thought a portrait might be nice, and then it hit him: "I should ask Mari Yamazaki," so he placed the order.

Actually, Mari is a painter with solid skills who originally went to Italy to study portrait painting. (Her specialty is said to be portraiture in the style of the late 14th to mid-15th century. Renaissance painting, that is.)

And yet, not only "Thermae Romae," but "Olympia Kyklos" was also interesting, wasn't it? lol

I watched the anime too, lol.

Needless to say, this is a special exhibition where you can enjoy the incredibly diverse world of Mari's work.
It's in Hachioji, so it's a bit far, but I definitely want to visit.

Beauty in Abundance: Osaka City Museum of Fine Arts Collection Exhibition

Venue: Suntory Museum of Art (Roppongi, Tokyo)
Dates: September 14 (Wed) – November 13 (Sun) *Exhibits will be rotated
★Advance reservation recommended
★No tour scheduled

This is an exciting exhibition where a wealth of collection pieces are coming to Tokyo in conjunction with the museum's large-scale renovations.✨

It looks like you'll be able to see a truly wide variety of works all at once, from Japanese paintings to folding screens, hanging scrolls, Buddhist statues, and crafts. I'm looking forward to it.

Kyoto Photographed by Eizaburo Hara: Warhol in Kyoto 1974

Venue: ZENBI - KAGIZEN ART MUSEUM (Gion, Kyoto)
Dates: September 17 (Sat) – February 12, 2023 (Sun)
★No advance reservation required
★No tour scheduled

Sorry, this is in Kyoto, not Tokyo...

Kyoto is all about Warhol this autumn and winter.
You can enjoy Warhol's work at "ANDY WARHOL KYOTO" which has started at the Kyocera Museum of Art,ANDY WARHOL KYOTOand also at the "Museum Ludwig Exhibition" which will soon be touring to the National Museum of Modern Art, Kyoto.Museum Ludwig Exhibition

However, this is the Warhol exhibition I personally want to see the most.
For starters, I just love ZENBI.
I'd like to visit Kyoto on a snowy day if possible; knowing full well it will be freezing, I really want to see a pure white, quiet Kyoto. I'm vaguely thinking it would be nice to visit in December or so.

From here on, I will introduce a selection of art fairs being held in Tokyo!!!

3331 ART FAIR

Venue: 3331 Arts Chiyoda (Yushima, Tokyo)
Dates: October 29 (Sat) – 30 (Sun)
★No advance reservation required
★No touring schedule

This is the 11th and final art fair to be held in the building of the former Rensei Junior High School.

As announced this past June, Chiyoda Ward, which has decided to continue cultural and artistic initiatives at this location, is planning surveys and renovation work due to the aging of the former Rensei Junior High School building, and it seems that the activities of 3331 Arts Chiyoda will also come to a temporary end as of March 2023.

While we will have to wait for future announcements to see what will happen to this space—a former junior high school that makes everyone feel strangely excited—I personally want to fully enjoy this final 3331 ART FAIR that can be experienced in this space.

TOKYO ART BOOK FAIR 2022

Venue: Museum of Contemporary Art Tokyo (Kiyosumi-shirakawa)
Dates: October 27 (Thu) – October 30 (Sun)
★No advance reservation required
★No touring schedule

An annual art book fair that is irresistible for book lovers!
Unfortunately, I couldn't go last year, so I am determined to go this year!!!!!

★Postscript: I went!!!

.................................

With that said, thank you for reading this long article once again.
I will continue to keep myself in perfect health, work hard every single day, and make sure not to miss out on visiting exhibitions!!!
As I say every time, oh, I really wish I had an Anywhere Door.