Darren Gore

With an abundance of art shows happening this season, it'll be hard to catch all of the latest installations before they disappear. Nonetheless, we've got a list of the top art exhibitions taking place in some of Tokyo's most popular museums and galleries to help you figure out where to start. For a full day of art excursions, you should also check out Tokyo's best street art and outdoor sculptures, or fill your Instagram feed at the newly reopened teamLab Borderless. Note that some museums and galleries require making reservations in advance to prevent overcrowding at the venues.  RECOMMENDED: Escape the city with the best art day trips from Tokyo

Though Tokyo enjoys a reputation as a futuristic megacity, and patches of green can appear scarce from the heights of a skyscraper within the city, some one-third of Greater Tokyo is in fact made up of woodland. These are the places to seek out when you need a break from the frenetic pace of Tokyo’s main hubs. What’s more, some of the best are also home to cafés that vibe with their serene surroundings. Some of these serene forest cafés can be found within the city’s 23 wards, while others are waiting to be discovered in the lush countryside that unfolds to the west of the metropolis. Here are three standout examples, ranging from an Italian-style garden café to a terrace overlooking a dramatic gorge. Recommended: 7 best nature getaways in Tokyo

Tokyo’s Harajuku-Omotesando intersection has a new landmark in the form of Tokyu Plaza Harajuku Harakado. With stunning design that features a vertical rooftop garden embedded into a reflective, geometric facade, the new development shares aesthetic DNA with Tokyo Plaza Omotesando Harajuku directly opposite. A total of 75 shops, restaurants, bars and other businesses can be found across Harakado’s nine above-ground and three basement levels. Mixed among the shopping opportunities are a number of cool experiences: some unique in this corner of the city, others unrivalled in all of Tokyo. The leafy rooftop garden combines with a giant, sun-inspired art installation to conjure a refreshing sense of wild nature, while an authentic sento bath brings retro vibes to this 21st-century development. Harakado’s retail aspect too offers some pleasant surprises, including openings from some lesser-known names to watch, and a concept store dedicated to the safest of safe sex: the solo variety. You could spend a whole day at this fitting new addition to Harajuku-Omotesando, a spot where cutting-edge culture and sleek luxury have long converged.RECOMMENDED: 50 best things to do in Harajuku

The 1960s and ’70s were a perfect storm of art, social activism and emerging technologies, with newly accessible media such as video giving a platform to previously unheard voices, and socially progressive artists integrating these new technologies into their work. Feminism, as this exhibition explores, was prominent among the movements that leveraged new moving image media to challenge established social attitudes. Moreover, this dynamic deployment of tech in the battle against lingering sexism continues into the present day. Nine important works from the National Museum of Modern Art collection are brought together to tell this story, with four ‘key terms’ serving as hints to understand and appreciate them: ‘The Mass Media and Images’, ‘The Personal’, 'The Body and Identity', and ‘Dialogue’. Highlights include ‘Love Condition’ (2020), a vividly colourful video piece by Mai Endo and Aya Momose, in which the two artists knead clay while discussing the notion of 'ideal genitalia'. Mud, meanwhile, is the material of choice in Shiota Chiharu’s ‘Bathroom’, a 1999 video work which shows the artist covering her body with the substance, in an attempt to reconnect with pure sensation amidst the artificiality of urban life. The exhibition is closed on Mondays (except November 4) and November 5.

Among the illustrated characters that emerged in Japan across the second half of the 20th century, and continue to capture hearts both at home and across the globe, none represents the phenomenon better than Hello Kitty. With a half-century now having passed since the cartoon feline was introduced by the Sanrio company, this major exhibition looks at how Kitty-chan’s design has evolved over decades of cultural change: without ever losing that innate charm that has endeared her to generation after generation. The largest collection of Hello Kitty goods ever amassed in one place, as well as video content and other media, gradually reveals the secrets to this character’s appeal: how besides keeping pace with the times while simultaneously transcending them, Hello Kitty can mirror the day-to-day moods of each and every fan. Highlights include collaboration pieces created with well-known artists and designers, and a series of immersive photo spots featuring not only Kitty-chan but also other faces from the Sanrio stable, including My Melody and Cinnamoroll.

What Museum, in Tokyo waterfront district Tennozu, presents an ‘inadvertent’ collection of contemporary art belonging to renowned tech and AI entrepreneur, Takafumi Takahashi. The ‘T2 Collection’, which takes its name from owner’s initials, has been amassed over the past six years as Takahashi gradually dived deeper into the world of modern art. Along the way he picked up works which captivated him in some way, by notable Japanese and international artists including Kohei Nawa, Barry McGee and Tatsuo Miyajima. What was never consciously acquired with a ‘collection’ in mind is now on public display for the first – and possibly only – time. Across the 35 diverse works featured here, a common thread is Takahashi’s recognition of a connection between art and entrepreneurship, in that the leading players in both spheres challenge the world with unique and unprecedented concepts and visions. One exhibition room, dedicated to the medium of photography, explores how contemporary artists have developed their photographic expression amid a rapid rate of change in both technology and the role of images in society.

Master painter Claude Monet (1840-1926) is best known for Impressionist works that captured on canvas the ceaseless transitions of nature. As explored by this major exhibition, however, in the later years of his career, this French artist pursued a more abstract approach, with inspiration coming from both personal and wider realities such as bereavement, his own eye disease and the First World War. The natural world remained Monet’s ostensible subject matter, such as his signature water lily ponds and their surrounding trees and skies, but his depictions of such scenes were then additionally coloured by internal distress. For this show, around 50 pieces from Musée Marmottan Monet in Paris have been brought over to Japan, with many being shown in the country for the very first time. These are augmented by works held in collections across Japan, to form an expansive look at Monet’s later career. The highlight here is a large screen of water lilies, which stands over two metres tall and makes for a truly immersive experience. The exhibition is closed on Mondays (except November 4, January 13, February 10 and February 11) as well as November 5, December 28-January 1, and January 14.

US-born photographer Alec Soth (b. 1969) has won worldwide acclaim for his largely narrative-driven images, which often depict scenes from his native Minnesota and the wider Midwest region. His work has also earned him full membership in the legendary Magnum Photos collective, whose former members include the likes of Ansel Adams, Robert Capa and Henri Cartier-Bresson. Though this major solo exhibition spans the entirety of Soth’s three-decade career, the Tokyo Photographic Art Museum has curated the show to be somewhat more nuanced than the typical retrospective. The experts at what is Japan’s most prestigious photography venue have selected scenes shot almost entirely indoors to create a distinctive and new interpretation of the artist’s life-work so far. Multiple works here are taken from series of photographs that Soth has produced on travels both across his homeland, and then further afield. One of these series, titled ‘I Know How Furiously Your Heart is Beating’, was key in his transition from US road trip exploration to more international shooting. For this series, which in 2019 was compiled into a photo book, Soth hopped across the globe to visit and photograph numerous celebrated individuals in the rooms where they spent most of their time. Subjects range from the late dancer and choreographer Anna Halprin to Japanese novelist Hanya Yanagihara.  The exhibition is closed on Mondays (except when Monday is a holiday, the museum is open and closed the following day) and

The shining full moon looms large in both the autumn night sky and Japanese cultural tradition that is so deeply rooted in nature. This event, at one of Japan’s most lavishly decorated hotels, brings together these two elements and mixes in a third element of contemporary art, in an aesthetic celebration of a natural phenomenon that has enchanted humanity for millennia. From traditional moon-viewing season in early October, multiple rooms and spaces around the hotel’s Hyakudan Kaidan (‘The Hundred Stairs’, a designated tangible cultural property that spans seven storeys) host lunar-centric artworks ranging from Edo-period (1603-1868) woodblock prints to stunning, hi-tech projection-mapping installations. Highlights include 20 prints by artist Tsukioka Yoshitoshi, who is considered the last great master of ukiyo-e (woodblock print) painting and printmaking, and a selection of works by contemporary artists, in which the moon was rendered using a wide variety of techniques including glass and Japanese washi paper. Across the ornate interiors of seven rooms, meanwhile, projection mapping helps conjure up a two-metre-wide full moon that shines above a series of installations inspired by ukiyo-e depictions of moonlit autumnal scenes. The exhibition is open daily, but closed on Tuesday November 5.

This annual design event, which this year explores the theme of designing for a sustainable future, sees the vast grass square across from Tokyo Midtown host three large-scale installations that adults will appreciate as imposing abstract sculptures. Kids, meanwhile, are welcome to climb all over them. Together, this trio of giant rings forms ‘Logging Hill’, a creation by up-and-coming Tokyo-architect Taichi Kuma. Besides marvelling at their form or clambering over them, visitors are invited to place special stickers on the rings to form a colourful record of public participation that will grow over the event’s duration. On the afternoon of October 20 (3pm-4pm), Logging Hill will also be the venue for a one-off live session by acclaimed musician Shuta Hasunuma. Also on the Design Touch program is another outdoor installation, ‘Urban Voice’, located in Midtown Garden and designed by architect Eri Tsugawa. Here, a group of primitive-looking concrete objects, based on a 3D scan of the garden’s micro-topography, will investigate how people react to objects that appear in otherwise empty space. These must-see al fresco artworks are accompanied by a string of events including guided tours, workshops, talk events and the Tokyo Midtown Award 2024 Exhibition, which showcases the results of a design and art contest aiming to discover and support new art and design talents.

The life of painter Tanaka Isson (1908-1977), best known for expressing the natural beauty of the Unesco World Heritage-designated island Amami Oshima, took a truly dramatic arc. While still a child, his outstanding talent for nanga – a Japanese painting style inspired by the aesthetics of the Chinese literati – led to him being hailed as a young prodigy destined for success. After he dropped out of Tokyo Fine Arts School (now Tokyo University of the Arts) for still-unknown reasons, subsequent decades saw Isson work as a farmer, while continuing to paint despite lack of recognition. At the age of 50, in 1958, he relocated alone to remote Amami Oshima, close to Okinawa in Japan’s southwest, whose tropical flora and fauna would inspire him anew. While working as a fabric dyer to support his artistic practice, Isson developed a way of conveying his idyllic new surroundings that was painterly and simultaneously marked by a level of vivid detail that could today be described as ‘high definition’. It was only following Isson’s death at the age of 69, while still residing on Amami Oshima, that his work began to receive its long-overdue acclaim. Isson’s posthumous reputation has continued to grow, culminating in this major retrospective comprising over 250 works. Paintings, sketches, documents and other artefacts create a complete picture of the artist’s life and work, with some recently discovered pieces revealing hitherto unknown aspects of his creative practice. This exhibition is

French-born artist Louise Bourgeois (1911-2010) has long loomed large over Roppongi Hills: her outdoor sculpture of a gigantic spider, named ‘Maman’, is a local landmark. The sprawling development’s Mori Art Museum, then, is a fitting venue for this major retrospective of one of the most important artists of the past century. As explored by Bourgeois’ first large-scale Japanese solo exhibition in over 25 years, fear was an ongoing motivation over her seven-decade career. This fear, however, was not the arachnophobia that one might suppose, given the formidable ‘Maman’. Rather, Bourgeois’ work was driven in part by fear of abandonment; something rooted in her complex and sometimes traumatic childhood. Through her famed oversized sculptures, installations, drawings, paintings and other mediums, she confronted painful personal memories while simultaneously channelling them into work that expresses universal emotions and psychological states. Across three exhibition ‘chapters’ that each explore a different aspect of family relationships, highlights include the ‘Femme Maison’ series of paintings from the 1940s. These works, which decades later were championed by the feminist movement, each depict a female figure whose top half is obscured by a house which protects yet imprisons her. Bourgeois’ extensive use of the spider motif, meanwhile, is examined in depth. As hinted at by the landmark ‘Maman’ (the French equivalent of ‘mummy’), for Bourgeois the spider was symbolic of the moth

Tokyo’s Roppongi district is a contemporary arts hub by day and a party hotspot after the sun goes down. This annual event combines these two facets in a celebration of creativity that takes over art museums, shopping centres and the streets themselves. The 13th edition of Roppongi Art Night comprises over 40 programmes from 30 artists and art collectives, featuring exhibitions, performances, installations, digital works, music and much more. Alongside major ongoing shows, Roppongi Art Night includes a host of exclusive presentations. Many take place in public spaces, and can be enjoyed without spending a single yen. Kyota Takahashi’s ‘PongiRing - Parade of Light Flower’ will see a procession of people wearing flower-shaped, glow-in-the-dark rubber rings parade through the streets. Japan’s traditional Bon Odori festival, meanwhile, is reimagined by Electronikos Fantastikos! as a hyper-energetic celebration of electricity, set to live music played on household appliances. Taiwanese-Japanese duo Tsai and Yoshikawa present giant, abstract flower sculptures in fluorescent hues, and an 'urbanised' version of Japan’s fox deity will stand guard in Tokyo Midtown, courtesy of Hiroko Kubo.

Now that digital imaging is so advanced that its output can be unnervingly realistic, there is an undeniable charm in computer-generated art that proudly displays the big, blocky pixels from which it is formed. The eighth edition of Shibuya Pixel Art, a festival taking place at eight venues around Shibuya and neighbouring Harajuku, celebrates this multi-faceted aesthetic with exhibitions, live music, talk events and more, from over 100 artists and performers. The action also extends out into the surrounding streets. Around 50 works based on this edition’s theme of ‘Bit Valley, Bit Flowers’, all nominated for the Pixel Art Contest 2024, will appear on giant screens and digital signage at some 100 locations. Winning entries will then be revealed at a prize-giving ceremony taking place on September 29, at the 404 Not Found and re-search venues located within Shibuya Sakura Stage. Other events unfold at venues including All Day Place Shibuya, Sequence Miyashita Park and Tokyu Plaza Omotesando Omokado. Shibuya Pixel Art also neatly coincides with Tokyo Game Show 2024 (September 26-29).

Tokyo culinary giant the Onodera Group adds yet another string to its bow with the opening of this unagi-focused eatery in Akasaka. Known for its Sushi Ginza Onodera restaurants with locations in Los Angeles and Hawaii, the company here taps the firewood-grilling expertise of chef Keiichi Terada, whose work at the group’s French restaurant Makiyaki Ginza Onodera has been awarded a Michelin star four years running. Here Terada’s way with a blazing flame is applied to the traditional Japanese delicacy of unagi (eel grilled in a thick, sweetened form of soy sauce) to mouthwatering effect. This dish is especially popular at the height of summer, as it is believed to combat the exhausting effects of the heat. Terada’s menu serves up domestic eel in various styles. A tangy aroma, which is the result of a sauce specially created under his direction, rises from the staple unaju (unagi served over rice in a lacquered bento box; from ¥2,200), as well as from other offerings including unatamadon (a donburi rice bowl topped with unagi and egg, served at lunchtime only; ¥980). Side dishes include tsukudani (¥350), which consists of eel liver boiled down with ginger. Even the edamame served here (¥350) are something special, carrying the fragrant aroma of Terada’s signature burning firewood.

Tokyo Disneyland’s Cinderella Castle is once again the backdrop for a multi-sensory spectacle, which brings together Disney, Pixar and Marvel characters in a mesmerising projection-mapping-based evening show. Following a five-year hiatus due to the pandemic, 'Reach for the Stars' has returned stronger than ever with over ten feature films represented. 画像提供：©Disney Without giving too many spoilers, proceedings open with Disney characters coming to life and then soaring skywards. Tinker Bell, from ‘Peter Pan’, sprinkles pixie dust into the air as she invites the audience into the show’s dream-like alternate reality. One standout moment is the debut of a segment based upon Disney’s 2023 animated movie ‘Wish’, which marked the studio’s 100th anniversary. As fireworks explode and illuminate the scene, the film’s Star character ascends to the castle’s peak. 画像提供：©Disney Pixar fans, meanwhile, will be thrilled at segments based upon ‘Up’, ‘Luca’, ‘Brave’ and, making its ‘Reach for the Stars’ debut, ‘Wall-E’. A touching scene from the latter, involving Wall-E and his sweetheart Eve, is made even more magical as bursts of fireworks shoot up in celebration of their love. 画像提供：©Disney Marvel also makes an impressive appearance, with 'cameos' from Iron Man, Captain America and Captain Marvel, along with Rocket and Groot from ‘Guardians of the Galaxy’. In a particularly jaw-dropping scene, Thor raises his hammer, summoning flames around the castle as lightning crackles all around.

Tokyo’s Roppongi district possesses a curious – and compelling – double identity: contemporary arts hotspot by day, and party central after the sun goes down. The annual Roppongi Art Night dynamically unites these two facets in a celebration of creativity that takes over major art museums, shopping complexes and the city streets themselves. Over three evenings from September 27 to 29, the 13th edition of Roppongi Art Night comprises over 40 programmes from 30 artists and art collectives, curated to reflect the 2024 edition’s theme of ‘A Festival of City, Art and Future’. Across an eclectic selection of exhibitions, performances, installations, digital works, music and more, runs a common thread of global-mindedness and continuation into the next generation. Alongside major ongoing art shows, including the spectacular Keiichi Tanaami retrospective at The National Art Center, Tokyo, Roppongi Art Night includes a whole host of exclusive presentations. Many take place in public spaces, and can be enjoyed without spending a single yen. Among these, here are just a few of the highlights. Rondo of Flowers, 2018. Photo: Mito Murakami A procession of glowing flowers lights up Roppongi’s streets 'PongiRing - Parade of Light Flower' is a one-night-only ‘living artwork’ created by Kyoto-born Kyota Takahashi. A crowd of people wearing flower-shaped, glow-in-the-dark rubber rings will walk from the National Art Center, Tokyo, through Tokyo Midtown and on to Roppongi Hills. LED lights on

Tokyo is so vibrant that it seems there’s never a quiet moment in the city. Every weekend is jam-packed with events, festivals and exhibitions of every kind. This September 27-29 weekend is no exception. In fact, you should brace yourself for a big weekend, as Tokyo is hosting a diverse line-up of festivals from contemporary art to traditional shrine parades. There’s even a rare late-season fireworks festival if you missed any of the summer pyrotechnic showcases a few months back. So get ready to go out and make the most of your weekend in Tokyo. Photo: Ephemeral Collection, Atelier Sisu Roppongi Art Night September 27-29 Tokyo’s Roppongi district is a contemporary arts hub by day and a party hotspot after the sun goes down. This annual event combines these two facets in a celebration of creativity that takes over art museums, shopping centres and the streets themselves. The 13th edition of Roppongi Art Night comprises over 40 programmes from 30 artists and art collectives, featuring exhibitions, performances, installations, digital works, music and much more. Alongside major ongoing shows, Roppongi Art Night includes a host of exclusive presentations. Many take place in public spaces, and can be enjoyed without spending a single yen. Kyota Takahashi’s ‘PongiRing - Parade of Light Flower’ will see a procession of people wearing flower-shaped, glow-in-the-dark rubber rings parade through the streets. Japan’s traditional Bon Odori festival, meanwhile, is reimagined by Electro

In Kyoto this autumn, the historical city’s rich traditional culture converges with cutting-edge technology to create a breathtaking form of immersive, contemporary art. Nine sites around this history-steeped former capital will be transformed by Naked digital art collective, via projection mapping and other advanced tech, into evening-only digital art installations, with each themed to reflect the location’s individual character.   Among these are a number of Unesco World Heritage Sites. A mountainside temple hosts a digital art experience that riffs on the use of candles in Buddhist ceremonies, while a former imperial castle becomes a large-scale artwork conveying the delights of traditional Kyoto cuisine. This series of events, known collectively as Naked Garden One Kyoto 2024, is running from September 14 to December 8. However, each venue has different dates.  Photo: Nicholashan/DreamstimeKyoto's Nishi Hongan-ji Temple during daytime Nishi Hongan-ji Temple October 1–16 Established back in the 14th century and located at this site since 1591, this sprawling, majestic temple complex is celebrating the 30th anniversary of its World Heritage Site designation. For the first half of October, the Hiun-kaku – which is regarded as one of Kyoto’s three most important pavilions – will be transformed via hi-tech illuminations into a ‘temple of light’. Photo: Naked, Inc. Nijo-jo Castle October 25–December 8 This low-lying castle, built in 1679 by the Tokugawa Shogunate and used a

As if an after-dark stroll around Kennin-ji, Kyoto’s oldest Zen temple, wasn’t transcendental enough, this hugely popular, hi-tech-powered event heightens the experience through a combination of the latest in audio-visual and projection technology, and ‘Neuro Music’ audio that affects brain waves at a deeper level than a conventional background soundtrack. Located in the historic former capital’s Shijo-Gion district, this elegant temple has already wowed tens of thousands of visitors with its Zen Night Walk Kyoto experience that brings a new dimension to this sacred site that boasts over eight centuries of history. Photo: Supplied For this special after-dark visit, ultra-high-quality speakers have been installed across the temple’s precincts to provide an ambient-style soundtrack which, according to the developer of the proprietary Neuro Music technology, attenuates your brain waves to induce such sensations as focus and relaxation. Moreover, with the addition of cutting-edge lighting and projection tech, the entire setup conjures up a new and stunningly unique Zen aesthetic that's almost ethereal.  Photo: Supplied As you pass though what have been christened the temple’s ‘sound corridors’, you will be drawn into a mindful state by a series of art installations and the ambient soundtrack. Some of the highlights to look out for on your night walk at this historic temple include a sea of blue clouds appearing to float over the Daioen, one of the Japan’s most revered dry lan

The boundary between nature and contemporary art becomes headily indistinct at this huge art installation outside Tokyo in Tochigi prefecture. The Genki-ro is a towering, furnace-like structure erected within a subterranean space, and the latest in a series of large, highly experiential works by artist Takashi Kuribayashi, whose practice explores the boundaries between nature and society, the body and everyday life. This stirring piece of art functions as both something to appreciate with multiple senses, and a literally immersive experience that could be described as a sauna fuelled by both herb-infused steam and Kuribayashi’s creative powers. 画像提供：TRAPOL「大谷元気炉六号基」 The Genki-ro (literally, ’the furnace of vitality’) stands down in a tree-enclosed, open-air space in Utsunomiya’s Oyamachi, on land usually closed to the public. Its custom-built furnace boils water infused with medicinal herbs, then sends the aromatic steam through a pipe and up out of a sculptural arrangement of wood resembling the hollowed-out base of a voluminous tree. The surrounding ‘cavern’ is pervaded with a sense of healthy revitalisation. 画像提供：TRAPOL「大谷元気炉六号基」 Basic admission to the Genki-ro space costs ¥1,500. A more stimulating experience, however, can be had for a ticket price of ¥3,500. This option allows entrance to a windowed, sauna-style room pumped full of the Genki-ro’s high-temperature steam. Photo: Trapol ‘Bathing’ in this pungent medicinal steam requires that you bring swimwear: visito