As part of the public programs for Momose Aya: Interpreter, our latest exhibition, we will hold a screening of Momose Aya’s 2021 video work Flos Pavonis.
The film shines a light on illegal abortions in Japan and the anti-abortion law passed in Poland in 2021, showing how control of the individual’s body by the state is being consolidated as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic. An artist talk with Momose Aya is also scheduled to follow the screening.
*The video work Flos Pavonis will be presented entirely in English.
*If you wish to attend, please read through Help Prevent the Spread of COVID-19. All attendees are required to comply with these precautions. Please note that the content of the event may change due to the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic.
Image: Flos Pavonis, 2021, single-channel video, 30′
The Towada Art Center is proud to announce a special performance by exhibiting artists Behaviour Problem Trio as part of the Arts Towada 10th Anniversary Exhibition Inter+Play. For two nights in a row, the trio will interact with both the exhibition space and the artwork, using dance and music to reveal the invisible on a journey through the Towada Art Center. Please join us as Behaviour Problem Trio leads us on a museum experience that is anything but ordinary.
Schedule
Sun, Aug 8 & Mon, Aug 9, 2021
19:00 Doors Open
19:30 – 20:30 Performance (scheduled for 1 hour)
*Event attendance requires the purchase of an exhibition ticket.
Please purchase your ticket before the museum closes at 17:00, or after doors open at 19:00.
Tickets purchased after the museum has closed can be used for one day only, from the day following the event until the end of Inter+Play Season 1 on August 29.
On Tuesday, June 22, the Towada Art Center celebrated its 50,000th visitor to Inter+Play Season 1: Arts Towada 10th Anniversary Exhibition, which first open last year on Thursday, July 23, 2020.
The center has welcomed many visitors from both in and outside of the prefecture while taking measures to prevent the spread of COVID-19. These measures include a new online ticketing system that was introduced in April as well as advance notifications to guests when crowding is expected via the center’s website.
The 50,000th visitors to the exhibition were actually a three-person family from Hachinohe City in Aomori.
To commemorate the occasion, center director WASHIDA Meruro presented the family with a copy of the Inter+Play Season 1 catalog as well as a pair of complimentary tickets to the Towada Art Center, a voucher for a limited-time exhibition dessert available at the Cube Café & Shop, and a Towada Art Center eco-friendly tote bag. The daughter told us, “I was surprised to be the 50,000th visitor since this is my first time coming to a museum. The exhibition was pretty and amazing.”
Thank you to everyone who has visited the Towada Art Center during the exhibition.
Inter+Play Season 1: Arts Towada 10th Anniversary Exhibition is on display until Sunday, August 29, 2021.
Inter+Play Season 2 is set to open on Saturday, September 18, 2021.
Free Admission to the Towada Art Center’s Permanent Collection for Local Residents
On the 10th of every month, local residents of Towada can visit the permanent exhibition free of charge.
If the 10th is a holiday, the day before will be the free day.
Please present your My Number Card, driver’s license, insurance card, or other proof of address at reception.
Thank you for watching!
To commemorate the opening of the online virtual tour of the Towada Art Center’s permanent collection, we will hold an online talk between architectural historian and professor Igarashi Taro and Washida Meruro, Director of the Towada Art Center, on Saturday, January 23, 2021, from 14:00 to 15:00. In this talk, they will discuss the possibilities and significance of virtual reality (VR) in both art and architecture.
*The online talk is also available at the URL below.
https://youtu.be/fseNz8dqQ4w
*Click here for more information about the online virtual tour.
*Top image: Cause and Effect by Suh Do Ho as seen in the virtual tour
Igarashi Taro
Born in 1967. Professor, Graduate School of Engineering, Tohoku University. Igarashi was the Commissioner for the Japanese Pavilion at the 11th International Architecture Exhibition, Venice Biennale (2008) as well as artistic director at Aichi Triennale 2013. He has overseen exhibitions such as Impossible Architecture: The Architects’ Dreams, Windowology, and Quand la forme parle. In 2014, Igarashi was awarded the Art Encouragement Prize for New Artists. He is the author of numerous books, including Architecture after the Collapse of Modernism (2018), The Architecture of Tokyo (2020), and Decoding Decoration (2021).
Washida Meruro
Born in Kyoto, 1973. Director, Towada Art Center. Washida studied Western art history at the University of Tokyo. He was appointed to the construction office for the 21st Century Museum of Contemporary Art, Kanazawa, five years before it opened, where he was involved in the establishment of the museum and headed up the installation of its permanent collection. Since the museum opened in 2004, he has organized numerous exhibitions and projects, including KAZUYO SEJIMA + RYUE NISHIZAWA / SANAA (2005), Kanazawa Art Platform 2008, and solo exhibitions by Jeppe Hein (2011) and Shimabuku Michihiro (2013–14). While working at 21st Century Museum of Contemporary Art, Kanazawa, he was selected to be the curator of the Japanese Pavilion at the 57th Venice Biennale in 2017. In 2018, he became an independent freelance curator, going on to curate the Aichi Triennale in 2019. He has been in his current position as director since April 2020.
The Towada Art Center celebrated its 30,000th visitor to Inter+Play Season 1: Arts Towada 10th Anniversary Exhibition on Wednesday, December 9. After welcoming the exhibition’s 10,000th visitor on Tuesday, September 8, the center welcomed 20,000 more visitors in just three months.
Inter+Play is a three-part exhibition that celebrates the tenth anniversary of Arts Towada, the city-wide initiative that promotes art throughout the city of Towada and along its main thoroughfare of Kanchogai Avenue. The first season of the exhibition features the works of SUZUKI Yasuhiro, 目 [mé], TSUDA Michiko, evala, and MATSUBARA Megumi, which are on display not only inside the center but also throughout the city.
The 30,000th visitors to the exhibition were a couple from Kuroishi City in Aomori. To commemorate the occasion, center director WASHIDA Meruro presented the couple with a copy of the Inter+Play Season 01 catalog, as well as a pair of complimentary tickets to the Towada Art Center, a voucher for a limited-time exhibition dessert available at the Cube Café & Shop, and a Towada Art Center eco-friendly tote bag.
The couple said they came to the center after seeing posters and TV commercials for the exhibition, adding, “Nothing like this has ever happened to us before. We can’t believe that we were the 30,000th visitors.”
Thank you to everyone who has visited the Towada Art Center. Inter+Play Season 1: Arts Towada 10th Anniversary Exhibition is on display until Sunday, August 29, 2021.
Students studying to become curators are invited to give gallery tours of the Towada Art Center’s permanent collection as part of their museum curatorial internship.
Please come to reception with your permanent exhibition ticket at the scheduled time. No reservation required.
Documentary Video
*Sentences and the performance are in Japanese.
Details
Held inside the exhibition space of TSUDA Michiko’s installation, this performance will visualize the invisible: distance, gravity, time, Earth’s interior, and more.
*Performance scheduled for one hour.
In order to attend this event, you will be asked to Help Prevent the Spread of COVID-19.
*Photo: TSUDA Michiko, You would come back there to see me again the following day
MATSUBARA Megumi, Truth/Freedom, Inter+Play: Arts Towada 10th Anniversary Exhibition (Towada Art Center, Aomori, 2020) photo: OYAMADA Kuniya
KAMIMURA Megumi
Choreographer and dancer. Kamimura began performing in 2004. Her major works include “Strange Green Powder” (Festival/Tokyo 2019, Sekicho-an [Mejiro Garden], 2019) and “She was here 30 minutes ago.” (blanClass, 2019) In 2016, she began performing with TSUDA Michiko as part of the unit baby tooth. The unit’s performances include “SCREEN BABY #2.” (TOKAS Hongo, 2020)
Photo: KANAGAWA Shingo
TSUDA Michiko
Artist. Born in Kanagawa Prefecture in 1980. Tsuda Michiko completed a doctoral program in Film and New Media Studies at the Graduate School of Film and New Media, Tokyo University of the Arts. Her work focuses on the characteristics of video and takes on a variety of forms, including installation, video, and performance. In recent years, she has performed with Megumi Kamimura as part of the unit baby tooth. Her work has been shown at a number of group shows, including Aichi Triennale 2019 and Roppongi Crossing 2019: Connexions, as well as the solo exhibition The Day After Yesterday (2015, TARO NASU, Tokyo). In 2012, Tsuda participated in the AIR program of the Aomori Contemporary Art Centre (ACAC), and in 2019, spent time in New York as a fellow of the Asian Cultural Council (ACC).
The Towada Art Center celebrated its 10,000th visitor to Inter+Play Season 1: Arts Towada 10th Anniversary Exhibition on Tuesday, September 23. Inter+Play is a three-part exhibition that celebrates the tenth anniversary of Arts Towada, the city-wide initiative that promotes art throughout the city of Towada and along its main thoroughfare of Kanchogai Avenue.
The first season of the exhibition features the works of SUZUKI Yasuhiro, 目 [mé], TSUDA Michiko, evala, and MATSUBARA Megumi, which are on display not only inside the museum but also throughout the city. The 10,000th visitors to the exhibition were a couple from Akita City in Akita Prefecture.
To commemorate the occasion, museum director WASHIDA Meruro presented the couple with a copy of the Inter+Play Season 01 catalog, as well as a pair of complimentary tickets to the Towada Art Center, a voucher for a limited-time exhibition dessert available at the Cube Café & Shop, and a Towada Art Center eco bag.
The couple shared their thoughts on exhibiting artist MATSUBARA Megumi’s installation, saying that they were intrigued by the work’s concept of red and how it changes over time. They also commented that they were thrilled to be lucky enough to be the 10,000th visitors to the exhibition, as it marks one of their first outings since the start of the COVID-19 pandemic.
Thank you to everyone who has visited the Towada Art Center. Inter+Play Season 1: Arts Towada 10th Anniversary Exhibition is on display until Sunday, August 29, 2021.
In these interviews, the artists of Inter+Play Season 1 share the stories behind their creative process.
Part 1: TSUDA Michiko
Part 2: MATSUBARA Megumi
Part 3: 目 [mé]
*photo: TSUDA Michiko, You would come back there to see me again the following day
MATSUBARA Megumi, Truth/Freedom, Inter+Play: Arts Towada 10th Anniversary Exhibition (Towada Art Center, Aomori, 2020), photo: OYAMADA Kuniya
The Towada Art Center will be presenting a live stream of a lecture and performance by Inter+Play exhibiting artist MATSUBARA Megumi, followed by her conversation with exhibition curator KANAZAWA Kodama.(Language: Japanese)
Details will be made available soon.
*This event will be streamed live on the Towada Art Center’s YouTube channel.
Please note that this is an online event. The exhibition space will not be open to the public.
Photo image:MATSUBARA Megumi, Truth / Freedom, 2020, “Inter + Play #001: Arts Towada 10th Anniversary Exhibition”, Towada Art Center, Aomori, Japan
Photo: OYAMADA Kuniya
The Towada Art Center celebrated its 10,000th visitor to AKI INOMATA: Significant Otherness on Sunday, October 27. The 10,000th visitor to the exhibition was actually a three-person family from Hirosaki City in Aomori.
To commemorate the occasion, the museum congratulated the family together with children who were dressed up in bagworm-themed costumes that they made at the ARTois workshop held earlier that day. The lucky family received an exhibition catalog as well as a pair of complimentary tickets to the Towada Art Center and a voucher for a limited-time exhibition dessert available at the Cube Café & Shop.
The family told the museum that they were surprised to see how the bagworms moved around and that they enjoyed the hermit crabs and the beaver artworks.
Thank you to everyone who has visited the Towada Art Center during AKI INOMATA: Significant Otherness, which is on display until January 13, 2020.
Following a film screening, guest curator Nobuaki Doi will speak with exhibiting artists Ryo Hirano, nuQ, and Saigo no Shudan about illustration and their creative process.
Above image designed by Saigo no Shudan, illustrations by Ryo Hirano, nuQ, and Saigo no Shudan
Illustrations by Aomori artist NOZ
*Learn more at the artist’s website:
https://2nb-y.jimdo.com
NOZ (Yudai Nozawa)
Born in 1985 in Aomori, Japan
Graduated from Tokyo Designer Gakuin College
Exhibitions and Books
2016 – Design Festa Vol. 44 (Tokyo)
2017 – Design Festa Vol. 45 (Tokyo)
2018 – Featured on two pages of Monster (Artbook Jimukyoku)
2018 – Discover The One Japanese Art 2018 (London, UK)
2018 – Solo Exhibition & Live Painting, Towada Art Center Collaborative Space (Venue Hire)
2019 – Solo Exhibition, Towada Art Center Collaborative Space (Venue Hire)
2019 – Featured on two pages of Monster (Artbook Jimukyoku)
2019 – Group Exhibition, CROSS OVER Vol.18 (Singapore)
Open Music Square invites Towada locals to bring their music to the Towada Art Center once a month.
On the afternoon of Saturday, February 15, the Towada Art Center welcomes first- and second-year students from Prof. Nakashima’s research group in the Department of Early Childhood Education at Hachinohe Gakuin Junior College.
The group will perform hymns, classical works, and Japanese songs as well as Studio Ghibli and Disney numbers on hand-crafted Schulmerich handbells.
About the Group
The group aims to elicit deep emotional responses using the tones of the English handbell, performing at kindergartens, nursery schools, and various all-ages events with the aim of spreading the joy of handbell music and improving students’ performance techniques. They organize Christmas tree lighting ceremonies and perform every year at the Lapia shopping center in Hachinohe.
Open Music Square invites Towada locals to bring their music to the Towada Art Center once a month.
Day 2 welcomes a jazz band made up of second year students from Kitasato University.
From the classics to the latest pop sounds, the band has a flavor of jazz for everyone!
The band features the standard jazz sounds of saxophone, piano, upright bass, and drums, but they also invite the occasional guest to come up and jam. (Past guests have sat in on trumpet, clarinet, and violin.)
Each member has their own background outside of jazz, which include symphonies, brass bands, and pop music bands, but as second year veterinary students they have come together to form this band!
Open Music Square invites Towada locals to bring their music to the Towada Art Center once a month.
On the morning of Saturday, November 16, we welcome the members of the group Bremen.
Group Profile
We are a jazz band made up of current students and alumni from the Hirosaki University Jazz Society and Kitasato University Jazz Society. Our band performs to convey the fun and appeal of jazz. We hope that we can satisfy your musical appetite, like that contented feeling you have after a big meal!
Members
Yuka Hirao (Piano)
Hinata Tanaka (Guitar)
Chiaki Wada (Trumpet)
Kazuki Watanabe (Saxophone)
Kensuke Sudo (Drums)
Yumiko Uchiyama (Bass)
Open Music Square invites Towada locals to bring their music to the Towada Art Center once a month. On the afternoon of Saturday, November 16, the Towada Art Center welcomes the Kitasato University Guitar Club for the fourth installment of Open Music Square.
Performance Details
An acoustic show of singers and guitarists
About the Kitasato University Guitar Club
Members of the Kitasato University Guitar Club enjoy their favorite music on their own terms. The club welcomes guitarists of all skill levels, from beginner to expert, and we also enjoy playing other instruments as well.
Open Music Square invites Towada locals to bring their music to the Towada Art Center once a month.
Day 1 welcomes the Ushigoya Music Group.
The groups holds their own biannual concert series in a gorgeously renovated farmhouse and also performs at nursing homes, community events, cultural festivals, and senior social events.
They say that they “plan to always keep playing to make the elderly feel better ♥️ .”
This year’s Open Music Square performance will be guitar-based and feature folk songs and other popular tunes.
Open Music Square invites Towada locals to bring their music to the Towada Art Center once a month.
On the afternoon of Saturday, December 21, the Towada Art Center welcomes Bremen, who combine erhu and synthesizer to perform a range of fan favorites, from world-famous hits to film soundtracks and even the genre of Japanese enka.
They hope that their music can be used in daily life as a source of relaxation for both themselves and for others.
About Bremen
The group studies erhu under Mr. Zhang, who plays frequently around the Kanto area since moving to Yokohama ten years ago, and learns piano from Hachinohe jazz pianist Ms. Yumiko Hebiguchi.
Open Music Square invites Towada locals to bring their music to the Towada Art Center once a month.
On the afternoon of Saturday, January 18, the Towada Art Center welcomes ea-Z’s, the classical guitar duo of Hiroshi Itoh and Tomoyuki Kawamura.
At last year’s Open Music Square, the duo performed a selection of songs from film.
This year, they will perform well-known, seasonal classical pieces, including works by Handel, Bach, Chopin, and more.
About ea-Z’s
One of the area’s only classical guitar duos.
2019-08-29 — Performance at the Towada Sanbongi Elementary School Auditorium
2019-06-09 — Performance in Setagaya, Tokyo at the Towada Barayaki Tokyo First Anniversary Event
2019-06-02 — Performance at Towada City Plaza
2019-01-19 — Performance at the Towada Art Center
2018-10-21 — Performance at the Misawa Hospital Heartful Concert
Open Music Square invites Towada locals to bring their music to the Towada Art Center once a month.
On the morning of Saturday, February 15, the Towada Art Center welcomes Nanohana, who perform classical compositions in addition to pop music and movie soundtracks on flute, violin, and keyboard.
About Nanohana
A three-piece, all-female violin, flute, and piano group from Towada, Nanohana occasionally holds live performances for the Oirase Roman Park Beer House, at hospitals around Towada, and events by the Towada City Council of Social Welfare.
Open Music Square invites Towada locals to bring their music to the Towada Art Center once a month.
On the morning of Saturday, March 21, the Towada Art Center welcomes a vocal performance by Chikako Goto & Friends.
Please come and enjoy these beautiful singing voices as they brighten up the museum.
Exhibiting artist AKI INOMATA sits down with writer Yuju Wen to talk about her work and creative process. More details to follow.
Photo by Kenshu Shitsubo
A live reading will take place in the exhibition room, collaboratively performed by writer Yuju Wen, musician Yutaka Ito, and exhibiting artist AKI INOMATA.
*Photo:Why Not Hand Over a “Shelter” to Hermit Crabs? -White Chapel-, 2014-2015 *Reference image
©︎AKI INOMATA / Courtesy of MAHO KUBOTA GALLERY
A talk event with AKI INOMATA and exhibition curator Kodama Kanazawa will take place to commemorate the publication of INOMATA’s artist catalogue that features the works presented in the exhibition.
AKI INOMATA Artist Catalogue
“AKI INOMATA: Significant Otherness” (tentative title)
Scheduled for publication by Bijustu Shuppan-sha in late-October 2019
*The catalogue will be available to purchase at Towada Art Center, select book stores, and online.
Open Music Square is back for another season of music at the museum.
Open Music Square invites local musicians and groups to bring their music to the Towada Art Center once a month, and we are looking to invite local performers who will help brighten up the museum with the sounds of Towada.
To any and all musicians and groups in Towada, please do not hesitate to apply, and we look forward to seeing you all for another season of Open Music Square.
Open Music Square PDF (Japanese)
This week’s ARTois workshop is their fifth collaboration with the Towada Art Center.
Taking inspiration from Takashi Kuribayashi’s Sumpf Land, which is part of the museum’s permanent collection, participants will draw pictures on large sheets of white paper to create their own worlds that straddle some kind of ‘boundary.’
We hope you will join us.
This week’s ARTois workshop was their fifth collaboration with the Towada Art Center. Taking inspiration from Takashi Kuribayashi’s Sumpf Land, which is part of the museum’s permanent collection, children between the ages of 3 and 10 drew pictures on large sheets of white paper to create their own worlds that straddle some kind of ‘boundary’.
The workshop began with talking with the children about what a ‘boundary’ is. A colorful piece of tape was used to divide a large sheet of white paper, and the children were asked to create a scene while thinking about ‘boundaries’: Are there boys? Are there girls? Where do they live? After that, the children were taken to see Sumpf Land. After being asked what they thought they might see, one by one they climbed on the table to look through the hole in the ceiling. Afterward, everyone discussed what they had seen, with the children realizing that the lower and upper rooms, though completely different, are connected by the seal! With that discovery, it was time to start painting. But today, they would be painting with… cleaning supplies! Brooms, brushes, rough tawashi scrubbing brushes, and sponges will let the colors gradually mix to create completely marbled boundaries.
At the end, holes were made for each of the children to put their heads through for a group photo, each child a little seal, crossing the boundary between the two sides of their painting. This workshop was not only an exciting opportunity for the children to explore an art work and to feel the thrills and anxiety that come with creating something, but it also showed the possibilities for creativity and critical thinking that open up when a potentially difficult concept is explained in a simple and straightforward way.
Towada Art Center is happy to announce the next performance by the group Irone.
Doors open at 18:40 and music starts at 19:00.
*Seating is limited and available on a first-come first-served basis. Please note that you may be turned away once we have reached capacity.
Performers
Reiko Yoshikawa (Erhu, Koto & 17-String Koto)
Chizuko Mukaiyachi (Ocarina)
Yukiko Ueda (Flute & Piano)
Program
1. Natsu no omoide (Erhu, Ocarina & Piano)
2. Furusato (Flute Solo)
3. Bashofu (Erhu & Piano)
4. Shizumeru hitomi (seventeen strings solo)
5. Tsugaru no furusato (Ocarina & Piano)
6. Ikkojin (Erhu & Piano)
7. Mesuyagi no odori (Flute Solo)
8. Kaze ni kike, Part II (Flute Solo)
Starting this April, the Towada Art Center will be offering workshops in collaboration with contemporary art class ARTois. The first of these workshops is based on Shin Morikita’s Flying Man and Hunter from the museum’s permanent collection, with participants creating their own alter egos out of black corriboard cut to fit the size of their bodies. Participants can enjoy exhibiting their unique black shapes against the stark white walls of the museum, which is sure to make for some interesting “alter egos.”
*Photo above is from the second day of ARTois children’s workshop Let’s Make an Air Dome in the Clouds, held on March 24, 2019.
The novel Takeshi Shima is a project of the exhibition Stranger Than Fiction, held at the Towada Art Center from Saturday 13 April to Sunday 1 September 2019. 39,000 of the Japanese novel’s 45,000 characters—all but the final chapter—have been published online for free in seven installments. The final chapter is available to read at the exhibition, and the entire book will be published and made available for purchase at a later date.
Update (2019-04-12)
Due to overwhelming demand, we’ve made the final chapter of Takeshi Shima available online. Reading the novel will bring a whole new meaning to the artworks, documents, and videos on display at the museum, so be sure to visit the exhibition once you’ve finished reading.
This year Towada Art Center celebrates its tenth anniversary. Every year the museum is visited by children from nurseries and grade schools around Towada. Over the years, the museum has received many wonderful thank you letters from those children, who have written about their experiences here. Their unique perspectives and honest commentary are so heartwarming that we have compiled them in an online gallery where we can share them with the world.
As a cultural center of the city, the Towada Art Center is constantly creating community-centered projects and programs. Starting April 2019, we have begun Regional Exchange & Professional Development Training Through Art, a project formed in conjunction with the exhibition Stranger Than Fiction. This will be a hands-on program where participants actively engage in the management of an artist-led project that will expand beyond museum and into the community. To lead the project, we welcome artist Jun Kitazawa, who is currently based in Indonesia and has conducted experimental projects that involve the community in places both across Japan and abroad. The project will span five months and center on the operation of the project LOST TERMINAL, where the museum will serve as the terminal for a number of exotic vehicles Kitazawa has brought from Indonesia. The project will include experience-enhancing lectures for participants, who will have the opportunity to further develop the project independently through group work. If you’re interested in art or community outreach, we hope you will join us as we learn together and help bring this project to life.
LOST TERMINAL Orientation
Friday, April 5, 2019 18:00–
Artist Jun Kitazawa gives a presentation on his work and introduces LOST TERMINAL. We hope you will join us in exploring, together with the artist, the future relationships between art and the community and the forms of expression they may bring.
Training Day 1 — Planning LOST TERMINAL with the Community
Saturday, April 6, 2019 15:00–
LOST TERMINAL is not only the work of the artist but of all the people involved in its implementation. What kind of artwork will it become, and how will it develop and interact with the city? We hope you will join artist Jun Kitazawa in thinking about how to build a new future for Towada through art.
Training Day 2 — Making LOST TERMINAL Function within the Community
Sunday, April 7, 2019 15:00–
Beyond art, what does it mean to make an original idea “function” within the community? What will it take to make LOST TERMINAL work? Would you like to be a part of setting this project into motion? We hope you will join us in thinking about how to build a new future for Towada.
Training Day 3 — Letting LOST TERMINAL Develop in the Community
Sunday, April 14, 2019 15:00–
On Day 3, we will split into groups and try to actually develop something in the community. As each group works independently they will feed into each other, creating a feedback loop that will amplify the results of the activity.
Activities from May Onward
A variety of activities are planned, including talk events and twice-monthly group work and management training.
・ Group Work: Twice a month, mainly on weekends (Schedule will be decided upon together with participants during April meetings)
・ LOST TERMINAL Management Training to be planned around participants’ schedules.
・ Participants will be given priority access to Stranger Than Fiction talk events. (Please refer to the events page for details)
LOST TERMINAL finds Kitazawa bringing the knowledge gleaned from his many travels across Asia to his research on the city of Towada. In this project, Kitazawa will commission local artisans in Indonesia to create custom versions of the rickshaw bicycles often found on the streets there. These creations will then be brought to Towada and actually driven across the city for museum visitors and local people ride and enjoy. This is Kitazawa’s way of transcending space and time to rewrite the fading and forgotten ways of life of these two disparate lands—Indonesia with its ever-changing streetscapes and Towada with it’s history of horse breeding, as well as the rickshaw as a symbol that harkens back to an earlier time in Japan’s history.
Jun Kitazawa
Artist. Born in 1988 in Tokyo, Japan. Currently based in Yogyakarta.
Completed an M.F.A. from the Tokyo National University of Fine Arts and Music. President of of Jun Kitazawa Office Yakumo. Kitazawa conceptualizes ways to find and make meaning in a changing society using fieldwork in different countries and regions through collaborative efforts with people from diverse backgrounds. The realization of these efforts is in itself an attempt at artistic practice. Researcher at the Institute for Public Art (IPA) in Shanghai since 2013. Selected for 2016’s 30 Under 30 Asia: The Arts by Forbes. From April 2016 to March 2017, he went to Indonesia as a fellow of the Japan Foundation Asia Center.
Exotic Vehicles from Afar Come to Towada
At the Towada Art Center, preparations are currently underway for Lost Terminal, the latest project by Jun Kitazawa, one of the artists featured in our Spring 2019 exhibition, scheduled to run April 13 through September 1, 2019.
Lost Terminal finds Kitazawa bringing the knowledge gleaned from his many travels across Asia to his research on the city of Towada. In this project, Kitazawa will commission local artisans in Indonesia to create custom versions of the rickshaw bicycles often found on the streets there. These creations will then be brought to Towada and actually driven across the city for museum visitors and local people ride and enjoy. This is Kitazawa’s way of transcending space and time to rewrite the fading and forgotten ways of life of these two disparate lands—Indonesia with its ever-changing streetscapes and Towada with it’s history of horse breeding, as well as the rickshaw as a symbol that harkens back to an earlier time in Japan’s history.
‘Ads’ Drawn onto Cycle Rickshaws by Indonesian Artisans Will Complete the Artwork
For this project, we are looking for individuals, groups, and organizations to participate indirectly as “advertisers” in collaboration with local artisans and Kitazawa, who is currently based in Indonesia. The plan to engage advertisers comes from the fact that the advertisements on the sides these cycle rickshaws, known as becak, are individually hand-painted. Local artisans will paint your “advertisement” onto the Lost Terminal becaks in order to complete the project. By advertising in Jun Kitazawa’s latest project—through collaborative art with a diverse range of people across countries and regions—you will be helping to manifest a new kind of society. We hope you will join us!
Jun Kitazawa
Artist. Born in 1988 in Tokyo, Japan. Currently based in Yogyakarta.
Completed an M.F.A. from the Tokyo National University of Fine Arts and Music. President of of Jun Kitazawa Office Yakumo. Kitazawa conceptualizes ways to find and make meaning in a changing society using fieldwork in different countries and regions through collaborative efforts with people from diverse backgrounds. The realization of these efforts is in itself an attempt at artistic practice. Researcher at the Institute for Public Art (IPA) in Shanghai since 2013. Selected for 2016’s 30 Under 30 Asia: The Arts by Forbes. From April 2016 to March 2017, he went to Indonesia as a fellow of the Japan Foundation Asia Center.
Photo by CULTURE
VR! VR! VR! The Towada Art Center transformed into a virtual space through a collaborative effort to make artwork using VR technology! Break through the barriers of reality with this new, experiential attraction that goes far beyond anyone’s imagination!
Members Wanted!
Join us, Nadegata Instant Party, in creating this VR project!
Eligibility
Anyone who is interested in making art or art projects. No prior experience required.
We’re looking for people who
1. Want to act
2. Want to make VR props, large and small
3. Want to try shooting with a professional camera
4. Want to make meals
5. Want to help set up the exhibition
There are always more ways for people to get involved!
The Towada Art Center is planning a new collaborative community project by Nadegata Instant Party, to last April 13 – September 1 (dates tentative), as part of its 2019 Spring/Summer Exhibition. Work on the project will commence following initial information sessions. Works created during the project will be on display during the 2019 Spring/Summer Exhibition.
*Toru Nakazaki conducted the first session in person on December 26, 2018.
*The second session is at 15:00 on Sunday, January 27, 2019.
*For more information, see the flyerhere.
説明会お申し込み
Call, fax, or email us with your name, age, address, contact information (phone number), and days you would like to participate. For email and FAX, be sure to make the subject heading “VR”.
Towada Art Center
Tel: 81(0)176-20-1127
Fax | +81 (0) 176-20-1138
Email | info@towadaartcenter.com
Reservation complete upon reply from the museum.
*Join us for one day or both! Feel free to drop in on the day, too!
Nadegata Instant Party (Toru Nakazaki + Daisuke Yamashiro + Tomoko Noda)
An offbeat unit that flouts convention, Nadegata Instant Party consists of three members: Toru Nakazaki, Daisuke Yamashiro, and Tomoko Noda. Art collective started on 2013. They are committed to serving local communities and begin their creative process by producing just the right pretext for that area. In order to accomplish their goals, they involve many participants and create “reality” from a single event. They create their artwork by combining the narration of the process of a pretext becoming reality with installations, video and performative methodologies, and other mediums.
関連プロジェクト
VR! VR! VR! Break through the barriers of reality with this new, experiential attraction that goes far beyond anyone’s imagination and transform the Towada Art Center into a virtual space through a collaborative effort to make artwork using VR technology!
Members Wanted!
Join us, Nadegata Instant Party, in creating this VR project!
Eligibility
Anyone who is interested in making art or art projects. No prior experience required.
We’re looking for people who
1. Want to act
2. Want to make VR props, large and small
3. Want to try shooting with a professional camera
4. Want to make meals
5. Want to help set up the exhibition
There are always more ways for people to get involved!
The Towada Art Center is planning a new collaborative community project by Nadegata Instant Party, to last April 13 – September 1 (dates tentative), as part of its 2019 Spring/Summer Exhibition. Work on the project will commence following initial information sessions. Works created during the project will be on display during the 2019 Spring/Summer Exhibition.
*The first session was held at 17:00 on Wednesday, December 26, 2018.
*For more information, see the flyerhere.
説明会お申し込み
Call, fax, or email us with your name, age, address, contact information (phone number), and days you would like to participate. For email and FAX, be sure to make the subject heading “VR”.
Towada Art Center
Tel: 81(0)176-20-1127
Fax | +81 (0) 176-20-1138
Email | info@towadaartcenter.com
Reservation complete upon reply from the museum.
*Join us for one day or both! Feel free to drop in on the day, too!
Nadegata Instant Party (Toru Nakazaki + Daisuke Yamashiro + Tomoko Noda)
An offbeat unit that flouts convention, Nadegata Instant Party consists of three members: Toru Nakazaki, Daisuke Yamashiro, and Tomoko Noda. Art collective started on 2013. They are committed to serving local communities and begin their creative process by producing just the right pretext for that area. In order to accomplish their goals, they involve many participants and create “reality” from a single event. They create their artwork by combining the narration of the process of a pretext becoming reality with installations, video and performative methodologies, and other mediums.
関連プロジェクト
Please join us for a special tea ceremony to celebrate the coming of spring.
There no better way to wind down after the holidays than with a cup of tea in the museum’s relaxing atmosphere. We look forward to seeing you.
*Wagashi sweets are limited and will be offered on a first-come first-served basis.
*Above image is for reference purposes only.
Please join us for a special tea ceremony to celebrate the coming of spring.
There no better way to wind down after the holidays than with a cup of tea in the museum’s relaxing atmosphere. We look forward to seeing you.
*Wagashi sweets are limited and will be offered on a first-come first-served basis.
*Above image is for reference purposes only.
Open Music Square invites Towada locals to bring their music to the Towada Art Center once a month.
Day 5 will include both a morning and afternoon section. The morning section will feature an erhu performance by Reiko Yoshikawa of the group Irone. Five years ago Yoshikawa started Irone to share the diverse sounds of the erhu and koto, and the group has been performing regularly since then. Please join us to enjoy the beautiful sounds of the erhu as they reflect across the museum.
[Program]
Shiretoko Love Song
Tookue Ikitai
Nada Sōsō
Edelweiss
and more
Read more about the Irone Ehru & Niko Concert on June 30, 2018 (Japanese)
Open Music Square Day 5 included both a morning and afternoon section. The morning section featured a performance by Reiko Yoshikawa of the group Irone. Yoshikawa’s selection of familiar songs made the audience feel a close connection with the ehru. Many people had lunch as they enjoyed the beautiful performance.
Thank you to everyone who came to today’s performances, including those who stayed for both. And a special thanks to Reiko Yoshikawa for her beautiful performance.
Open Music Square invites Towada locals to bring their music to the Towada Art Center once a month.
Day 2 welcomes the members of the Kitasato University Guitar Club.
The club is a place where students can get together and practice, jam, and share their favorite music—though they sometimes set the guitars aside in favor of Jenga or a game of cards. The club performs regularly throughout the year at school events and during local Towada festivals.
At the Towada Art Center, the club has prepared a group of songs that will show off the range of the guitar.
<Program>
・Still(Hill song)
・One(DEPAPEPE)
・Sparkle(Radwimps)
・Amazing Grace
Open Music Square invites Towada locals to bring their music to the Towada Art Center once a month.
Day 5 will include both a morning and afternoon section. The afternoon section will feature a performance by musical group Blend Tea, which is composed of vocalist Eiji and keyboardist Atsuko. The two started the unit in order to perform and share their favorite music. From familiar standards to obscure deep cuts, the group will share a blend of different sounds and genres.
[Program]
Celery
ESCAPE
and 6 other pieces
Open Music Square Day 5 included both a morning and afternoon section. The afternoon section featured a performance by musical group Blend Tea, which is composed of vocalist Eiji and keyboardist Atsuko. The audience was treated to Eiji’s expansive range and Atsuko’s beautiful keyboard work. The group also welcomed the audience to participate in the performance, handing out castanets, tambourines, maracas, and triangles that got audience members of all ages into the music.
Thank you to everyone who came to today’s performances, including those who stayed for both. And a special thanks to Blend Tea for their wonderful performance. We look forward to bringing you more performances each month.
Open Music Square invites Towada locals to bring their music to the Towada Art Center once a month.
Day 8 welcomes Towada’s very own Junior Orchestra, who have been spreading their love of music throughout Towada. The orchestra is comprised of students of all ages—from kindergarten through high school—and regularly holds concerts throughout the year. Their Open Music Square concert will be a string section performance featuring the violin and cello.
Program
・ Fritz Kreisler’s Liebesleid (Love’s Sorrow)
・ Fritz Kreisler’s Liebesfreud (Love’s Joy)
・ Mozart’s Twelve Variations on “Ah vous dirai-je, Maman” (Twinkle, Twinkle, Little Star)
… and more
About the Junior Orchestra
Founded in 2001, the orchestra has held annual concerts since 2003. In 2018, they held their 16th annual concert in addition to private concerts and performances at Komakko Land and the Towada City Cultural Festival.
Open Music Square invites Towada locals to bring their music to the Towada Art Center once a month.
Day 7 welcomes the classical guitar duo ea-Z’s. Guitarists Hiroshi Itoh and Tomoyuki Kawamura will perform a selection of songs from film, which is sure to be a trip down memory lane and will pique the interest of those who have an ear for movie soundtracks.
We hope you’ll join us for another morning of music at the Towada Art Center.
Open Music Square invites Towada locals to bring their music to the Towada Art Center once a month.
Day 4 welcomes a collaboration between two groups, Hen-ne Bu and Ooodoru Bu.
The two groups, of Strange Sounds and Dance, respectively, were created during the Super Liberal Art School exhibition held at the Towada Art Center in 2013. Please join us at the museum to be transported to another world through music that focuses on the strange sounds of everyday objects and a special dance performance by the Ooodoru Bu.
A new project that reconsiders the scope of chiiki art kicks off in Towada with a two-day panel discussion.
The term chiiki art (community art) was used in a 2014 discourse by literary critic Naoya Fujita to describe the large number of art festivals in recent years that were named after the region where they were held. Many different remarks were made in response to the term as well as problems related to it, creating the singular phenomenon of chiiki art. But the term has been talked about by a wide range of people, from all manner of perspectives, both pro and con.
Furthermore, the term chiiki means something different to everyone and can include local residents, communities, governments, and business entities. All of those things and more are wrapped up in the concept that people call chiiki art. Activities referred to as chiiki art can take on many forms, all of which are distinct in nature yet also overlap with each other. These can include international art festivals, regional art festivals, art projects, regional art museum projects, socially-engaged art, support activities, and local revitalization. The aim of this project is to drive a wedge into current conceptions and generalizations by carefully looking at the range of chiiki art that has evolved independently and by understanding their significance and successes, as well as future possibilities and potential risks.
What has chiiki art communicated to us? And should it even be called chiiki art? In this event, speakers will revisit and reexamine this term, and this talk, as well as future writings and exhibitions, are set to be compiled in a catalog that will be published next year.
On the first day of the panel, three experts will share their work and explain what the term chiiki art means to them, after which a moderator-led discussion will explore the scope of what chiiki art can, and should, be.