Volume 39, Number 07
Diversions/Arts
By Owen Schaefer
Showing of the Hara's Hottest Properties
Owning property has never been a problem for the Hara Museum—in fact, they have two. While you may be familiar with the Tokyo gallery nestled in its sun-dappled green-space in Shinagawa, a more dedicated journey will take you to its annex—the Hara Museum ARC in the mountains of Gunma prefecture. The ARC is in the process of doubling in size—work which is expected to finish in May—and with a grand opening scheduled for July 27.
The architect responsible for the expansion work on the main building, as well as the new pavilion, is Arata Isozaki. Isozaki designed the Mito Art Tower, along with dozens of other international projects too numerous to go into, and has a talent for being as understated or overstated as he needs to be.
But while the construction is ongoing, there is no reason to starve for want of art. In honor of this expansion, Hara is running two near concurrent shows of works from their collection. The Hara’s holdings number more than a thousand, so while these exhibitions barely scratch the surface, they more than adequately fill the space of both galleries.
The show at Hara Museum ARC runs until July 6, and focuses on media art. It features 15 of the museum’s large scale pieces from artists such as Piotr Kowalski, Tabaimo, Marta Pan, Miwa Yanagi and more. But for those that just can’t escape the city, the main museum in Shinagawa is offering an exhibition focusing on Japanese works with a room dedicated to the goings on in Gunma for good measure.
Originally built to be a private residence, Hara has twisting corners, winding stairwells, and hidden rooms, and always feels like a treasure trove. Now, filled with its own private collection there is an almost homey feel to this exhibit. From Tomoharu Murakami’s dark study in texture, hung on the mantle of a fireplace, to Yayoi Kusama’s Self Obliteration, which forms its own less-than-cozy breakfast nook off of the upstairs hallway, the works seem to stake out spaces for themselves and occupy them fully.
There are plenty of heavy-hitters here, which speaks to the wise, or perhaps cautious, choices made by the Hara’s buyers. In photography, two of Miwa Yanagi’s, Elevator Girl series take their places appropriately enough, in the stairwell, New York-based photography phenomenon Hiroshi Sugimoto fills an entire wall with Kannons in his Hall of Thirty-Three Bays, while works by Nobuyoshi Araki lurk in the hallway. Yoshitomo Nara’s iconic scowling child makes an appearance in Eve of Destruction, along with an unusual sculptural piece from Yasumasa Morimura and one of Yukinori Yanagi’s fantastic ant-farm works, The 38th Parallel.
In an attempt to tie the two shows together, one final room of the Shinagawa Hara is currently devoted to the expansion at the ARC, and features topographical maps and scale models of the new buildings, and Okyo Maruyama’s Sketch of the Yodo River—an Edo period scroll from the Rokuro collection set to open in Gunma in July. It feels oddly out of place in its long, glass museum case, but this will be your one chance to see it without heading off to the mountains.
Selections from the Hara Museum’s Permanent Collection: (until Jun 1) Hara Museum of Contemporary Art. Shinagawa Station. ¥1,000. 11am–5pm (Wed until 8pm), closed Mon. Tel. 03-3445-0651.
Selections from the Hara Museum’s Collection: A Look at Media Art: (to Jul 2) Hara Museum ARC. JR Shibukawa Station. ¥1,000. 9:30am–4:30pm Tel. 0279-24-6585.
www.haramuseum.or.jp