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Picks is a monthly sampling of Japan's art scene, offering commentary by a variety of reviewers about exhibitions at museums and galleries in recent weeks, with an emphasis on contemporary art by young artists.
1 August 2014
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mission [SPACE x ART] -- beyond cosmologies
7 June - 31 August 2014
Museum of Contemporary Art Tokyo
(Tokyo)
With rocket parts and models, satellite images of the Earth, Leiji Matsumoto's space manga, and a "super-planetarium" that fills an entire gallery, this is indubitably a show about space. Indeed, were it not for the inclusion of some "real" art by the likes of Takuro Osaka and Kohei Nawa, it would be indistinguishable from your typical Space Expo. However, this one has something for everyone -- from kids to adults and from art mavens to couples on a date.

Semamori: Stitched Amulets on the Back of Children's Kimonos
5 June - 23 August 2014
Lixil Gallery 1
(Tokyo)
A semamori is a good-luck charm that was traditionally stitched onto a child's kimono to ward off evil spirits while the child was riding on its mother's back. Prevalent well into the 20th century, popular semamori motifs included the character for "happiness," magic spells and holy scriptures, embroidered flowers, red yarn, and cloth scraps. The exhibition of photographer Miyako Ishiuchi's work in the adjacent gallery also resonates well with these images so evocative of childhood.
Giving Warmth to the Building Skin: The World of Gio Ponti, Father of Modern Italian Design

6 June - 19 August 2014

Lixil Gallery, Osaka
(Osaka)
Besides the iconic Torre Pirelli skyscraper in front of Milan Station, the vast oeuvre of Italian architect-designer Gio Ponti (1891-1979) includes houses, churches, and products. Yet the breadth of his work is not well known in Japan, a fact brought home by this long overdue exhibition. His creative use of apertures and tiles testifies to his concern with the outer surfaces of structures.
Collection 1

24 May - 15 September 2014

The National Museum of Art, Osaka
(Osaka)
The museum juxtaposes new acquisitions with contemporary artworks already in its collection. Far in the back of the gallery, abstract pieces by Cy Twombly, U-Fan Lee, and Rei Naito combine to produce a surprisingly comfortable, flowing, even poignant atmosphere that makes the white room glow.
The Natural Brazil

13 June - 15 September 2014
Atelier Muji
(Tokyo)
With a prodigious array of photos and local objects, the gallery seeks to showcase the designs of everyday life in Brazil. CAt and Yoko Ando designed the display table and ceiling fabrics. The long, crooked table that dominates the exhibit is modeled after San Paulo's Ibirapuera Park, in which architect Oscar Niemeyer (1907-2012) had a hand.
Born in 1974

28 June - 24 August 2014
The Museum of Modern Art, Gunma
(Gunma)
The museum commemorates its 40th anniversary by featuring artists born in the same year. There are plenty of enjoyable works here -- by Aiko Miyaga and Maiko Haruki, who like to make us think about time, and by Takayoshi Tsuchiya and Fuminao Suenaga, who engage in conversations with architecture. But the standout is Kohei Kobayashi's installation, a complex study of relations among objects, forms and functions, meanings and signs. Particularly entertaining is the way it demands that we move around the room from caption to caption.
Imagination Super Highway

12 July - 17 August 2014
Kyoto Art Center
(Kyoto)
The three artists in this joint show -- Daisuke Inoue, Kotaro Ushijima, and Naomi Hamaguchi -- offer novel expressions born of imaginations stirred by encounters with freshly touching experiences or unusual events. These delicate, narrative-like works direct the eye toward the "nodes of imaginative power" that spur creative undertakings. The subtitle -- "If you stop thinking, you'll surely regret it" -- provides an extra dollop of food for thought.
Our Music

30 July - 3 August 2014
Black Bird White Bird
(Kyoto)
This exhibition celebrates the first issue of the comics anthology sinta, brainchild of Kyoto artist Mississippi, who has already published four issues of another comic zine, KyoCo. Both publications are bilingual. As the title of the show and of the inaugural issue indicates, the theme is music. One hopes for an aggressive, explosive presentation that goes beyond the usual display of original manga artwork.
Yoshio Shirakawa: dada, dada, da
15 March - 15 June 2014
Arts Maebashi
(Gunma)
Shirakawa studied "Japanese Dada" while in France and Germany in the seventies. Upon his return he moved to the foot of Mt. Akagi in Gunma Prefecture and began producing works of art and writing with a regionalist perspective. Until now we have not had an opportunity to see a full retrospective of his career. This one is full of stimulating surprises, ranging from the concept notes he wrote in Europe to his "Japanese Dada" materials, constructivist sculptures, an installation made of snowboards, and collaborations with younger artists.
Nobuyoshi Araki: Photography for the Afterlife -- Faces, Skyscapes, Roads
22 April - 29 June 2014

Toyota Municipal Museum of Art
(Aichi)
The now-venerable photographer's career is viewed in two parts: a general retrospective, and a section of mostly new work. The latter's August series consists of images shot through a camera lens that Araki smashed with a hammer. Says he: "I couldn't let go of Fukushima. Because of Fukushima, I couldn't shoot photos with an open mind. So I smashed the lens, and shot through that." Having survived prostate cancer surgery and the loss of sight in his right eye, Araki seems to be enjoying a renewed burst of creative energy these days.
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