Weekly Art News Digest: Van Gogh and Pokémon Collaboration, Theo Jansen in Chiba, Shiko Munakata and Yasuko Toyoshima Exhibitions
Left: Pikachu inspired by “Self-Portrait with Grey Felt Hat,” Naoyo Kimura (1960), The Pokémon Company International, ©2023 Pokémon / Nintendo / Creatures / GAME FREAK. Right: Vincent van Gogh, “Self-Portrait with Grey Felt Hat,” 1887, Van Gogh Museum Amsterdam (Vincent van Gogh Foundation).
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Pokémon x Van Gogh collaboration in Amsterdam
The Van Gogh Museum in Amsterdam houses the world’s most extensive collection of works by Dutch post-impressionist painter Vincent van Gogh (1853-1890). To celebrate the 50th anniversary of the museum’s opening, it is collaborating with Pokémon from September 28 to January 7, 2024. Suitable for ages six and up, visitors can join Pokémon Adventure while walking alongside Van Gogh’s paintings and discovering the stories behind the masterpieces (*).
It is known that Vincent van Gogh greatly admired Japanese woodblock prints. He was inspired by the use of flat surfaces with strong colors, everyday subjects, and attention to detail in nature. In the online lessons, available in English and Dutch, young students can learn about the connection between Van Gogh and Japan and how inspiration can flow in multiple directions.
Lesson for primary schools
Lesson for secondary education
*The promotional Pikachu with Grey Felt Hat card is no longer available for sale at the museum but is promised to appear soon at the Pokémon Center (United Kingdom, United States, and Canada). See the official website for more details.
Prints of “the world-revered Munakata” at the National Museum of Modern Art, Tokyo
The printmaker Shiko Munakata (1903-1975) was active during the Showa period and is associated with the sosaku-hanga (creative prints) and mingei (folk art) movements. Munakata is widely known for his work depicting Buddhist motifs, which won him international acclaim and the Grand Prix at the Venice Biennale in 1956. In 1970, he was awarded the Order of Culture, the highest artistic honor by the Japanese government.
To mark the 120th anniversary of Munakata’s birth, this retrospective exhibition travels across three regions that influenced Munakata’s development as an artist and served as his home and studio - Aomori Prefecture, Toyama Prefecture, and Tokyo. Focusing on the relationship between Munakata and each region, the exhibition illustrates his diverse activities in various fields, including woodblock prints, Japanese-style paintings, and oil paintings, to explore the nature of Munakata as an artist. The exhibition runs until December 3.
Theo Jansen's strandbeests arrive on coast of Chiba Prefecture
Dutch artist, inventor, and kinetic sculptor Theo Janssen (1948-) has been called the “modern Leonardo da Vinci.” Strandbeest, made from everyday materials such as plastic tubes and tape, is Janssen’s most renowned project. Skeleton creatures get the energy to move as they catch the wind and resemble living organisms traveling through the coastline. Strandbeests have evolved since their creation in 1990 and are classified into 12 evolutionary periods, which can be found on the official website.
To commemorate the 150th anniversary of the establishment of Chiba Prefecture, the Chiba Prefectural Museum of Art will hold Theo Jansen’s exhibition as part of a cultural exchange program with the Netherlands, a country with close ties to the prefecture. The exhibition will feature over ten wind-powered strandbeests, including Animaris Plaudens Vela (2013), Jansen’s original sketches, and the tools used by the artist. In addition, a special event will be held at Chiba Port on December 3, allowing the public to witness the strandbeest in action against the backdrop of Chiba’s coastline. The exhibition is scheduled to run from October 27 through January 21, 2024.
First museum exhibition of Yasuko Toyoshima to open at the Museum of Contemporary Art Tokyo
The long-awaited solo exhibition of Yasuko Toyoshima (1967-) is scheduled to open at the Museum of Contemporary Art Tokyo on December 9. Toyoshima has been exploring identity issues and the relationship between the human individual and society since 1990. By reinterpreting the values of school education, art, and the economy in a unique way, Toyoshima highlights the “individual” surrounded by these circumstances. Her work is becoming increasingly important in an age dominated by stagnation.
To provide a comprehensive overview of Toyoshima’s artistic career, the exhibition presents a range of works, from early to recent, including reinterpretations of earlier works. The exhibition is scheduled to run from December 9 through March 10, 2024.
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