Master of Arts in Curriculum and Instruction Kansas State University

State of the art

Exploring Roppongi and Tennozu, ii of Tokyo's artsiest neighbourhoods

Nosotros know it's difficult to believe, merely Roppongi, Tokyo'southward glitzy underbelly of pricey booze, sleazy clubs and bazaar shopping, lives a double life as the city's art hub. The majuscule's nearly famous entertainment district, once known as 'High Impact Boondocks', prides itself on an impressive array of small galleries and big museums – the cultural legacy of gentrification efforts over the last decade.

Further southeast, Tennozu Isle is no stranger to the art, or bamboozlement, of transformation from the bottom upwards either. In fact, the artificial island was literally dredged up from the depths of Tokyo Bay during the 1920s and '30s. Recently, extensive waterfront planning has seen the hitherto tranquillity warehouse district re-emerge as a be-muraled town dotted with canalside cafés, high-rise function buildings, hip hotels and fine art galleries.

Roppongi

This year, Roppongi's art cred was raised to new heights with the opening of the Complex665 edifice (6-5-24 Roppongi, Minato-ku), which houses a trifecta of influential galleries: Tomio Koyama, ShugoArts and Taka Ishii. The building sits on a residential back street tucked abroad from the hustle and bustle of Roppongi, but is hard to miss thanks to what appears to be a squiggle painted on its side. This symbol is the logo designed for Complex665 past artist Yoshihisa Tanaka, who imagined how a 'fictional artist named 665 might sign their own work'.

A major thespian in Tokyo's contemporary art scene, Tomio Koyama Gallery moved into the 2nd floor of the edifice from their previous location in Sendagaya, employing immature architects Toru Murayama and Ayako Kato to design their new 2-room exhibition infinite. They stand for an impressive roster of artists in Nippon, including wunderkind photographer Ryan McGinley, American post-minimalist Richard Tuttle and Yoko Ono.

Also on the second floor is ShugoArts, who have championed the advanced of Japanese art since the mid-'80s. Their gallery was designed by architect Jun Aoki, also responsible for facelifting the façade of the Louis Vuitton building in Ginza. Dissimilar their flatmates, ShugoArts keep the shop open on Sundays.

Calling dibs on the top bunk are Taka Ishii Gallery, who represent heavy-hitters similar Elmgreen & Dragset, Nobuyoshi Araki, Daido Moriyama and Thomas Need. Piece of furniture and interior design gurus Broadbean, whose offices occupy the ground floor, were enlisted to design the sleek gallery space on the third flooring, which wonderfully feeds off natural light coming in from the plant terrace.

If y'all've enjoyed killing a whole flock of birds with i stone, so head over to the Piramide Edifice (6-6-nine Roppongi, Minato-ku), which is some other not bad example of the tried-and-tested 'power in numbers' model of fine art collectives. Leading galleries Ota Fine Arts and Wako Works of Art are amidst its famous tenants.

Rising in a higher place the balance both in pinnacle and, arguably, in might, the 238-metre Roppongi Hills Mori Tower is home to the Mori Art Museum, which holds some of Tokyo'southward most ambitious and influential exhibitions. A retrospective dedicated to the Indian artist Due north S Harsha will be unveiled in February 2017.

The brainchild of fashion (and fragrance) designer Issey Miyake and young man design greats Taku Satoh and Naoto Fukasawa, 21_21 Design Sight more than underscores Roppongi's part as the focal bespeak of Tokyo's art scene. The common focus of their ever-changing lineup of exhibitions is interdisciplinary pattern.

The National Art Center (NACT), designed past Kisho Kurokawa of Nakagin Sheathing Tower fame, boasts the largest exhibition space of any museum in Japan. Unlike virtually of its counterparts, NACT is an 'empty museum', which means it does not accept a permanent collection, instead choosing to committee i-off exhibitions – their Monet bear witness was the second nearly visited exhibition in the world in 2007.

Located in Tokyo Midtown and designed by renowned architect Kengo Kuma, the Suntory Museum of Art possesses the biggest collection of Japanese arts and crafts in the country, comprised of a whopping 3,000-plus objects. Their tea ceremonies, staged on the sixth flooring every second Thursday, are a must do.

And for the 'Peanuts' fans out in that location, Roppongi has a Snoopy Museum, showcasing Charles M Schulz's original drawings and art for the beloved serial. A number of the cartoonist'due south early on works, vintage collectibles and other materials are besides on display.

Tennozu Isle

Backed by the Terrada warehouse company, which does far more than just stock Tokyoites' leftover belongings, Tennozu's new Archi-Depot museum displays a whopping 116 architectural models by Japanese starchitects, including works by Kengo Kuma, Shigeru Ban and Riken Yamamoto. While the exhibition warehouse isn't exactly a sight to behold, the architectural models – depicting both real buildings and unrealised projects – gleam like miniature cabinets of curiosities. Subsequently paying a visit to Archi-Depot, you're sure to walk away with a renewed appreciation for Tokyo'due south beautiful buildings, often overlooked in the relentless hustle and hurry of our dear metropolis.

Only a rock's throw away from Archi-Depot lies the hit art supplies 'laboratory' Paint, designed by Kuma and inspired by the look and feel of bamboo. It stocks more than 4,500 colour pigments, 50 kinds of animal glues, and a number of tiptop-quality traditional painting tools including over 200 antique ink sticks. The staff are all well-versed in the intricacies of the products and are happy to show you how to apply them.

Taking a cue from their comrades over in Roppongi, four contemporary fine art galleries recently decided to nestle against each other on the 3rd flooring of the Terrada Fine art Complex. The quartet is comprised of Kodama Gallery, who are getting ready for a solo prove by Japanese artist Gaëtan Kubo opening Jan 14; Urano, representing domestic talents such as Takahiro Iwasaki, who will be flight the flag for Japan at the 2022 Venice Biennale; Yamamoto Gendai, who count the legendary luminary Richard Serra among their artists; and Yuka Tsuruno Gallery, known for their collaborations with renowned artists Candida Höfer and José Parlá. Lest you forget your surrounds, the galleries are located within a fully operating warehouse and are only accessible by a service elevator.

As the former and electric current residents of neighbourhoods similar London's Shoreditch and New York's Brooklyn volition tell you, gentrification is a double-edged sword that tears through the former to brand way for the new. Whichever side of the tertiary wave café/local caff dissever you're on, the number and density of art galleries is often a practiced litmus test for how far a neighbourhood has come up downwardly the line. Less than half an hour apart, Roppongi and Tennozu Isle offer two different cases to study for those interested in the sociocultural effects of Tokyo'due south urban planning. Or you could just look at the art.

Terrada's master warehouse (2-vi-10 Higashi-Shinagawa, Shinagawa-ku) is holding an exhibition on David Bowie from Jan 8 to April ix – exist sure to get your tickets in accelerate.

Detect more galleries in Roppongi

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Source: https://www.timeout.com/tokyo/art/state-of-the-art

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