Part One (first floor) is entitled “Our 90 Years: 1923-2013.” Through representative works in the museum’s collection, we look at the creative endeavors of artists in the 90 years since the Great Kanto Earthquake and consider the territories they have explored in their works.

Part Two (third floor) presents “Chronicle,” a series that casts light on the issues of post-war Japanese art in the context of specific periods. This time, in our fourth installment, we take “seeing” as a theme in focusing on the late 1960s, when the concepts of art and “art viewing” were rethought and expanded in scope. This period saw a succession of artworks using fluorescent paint or pulsating lights to powerfully stimulate the visual sense, works incorporating design and technology, and works that viewers themselves complete through their participation. Such works were not only visually captivating, they also prompted varying actions and gave viewers themselves a new sense of connection with art. Part Two looks closely at these developments of the late 1960s, which still now inform contemporary art trends, with the inclusion of newly acquired artworks in our collection.
As a special exhibit, we present Tomoko Shioyasu’s work BIRTH in a gallery of our third floor exhibition space. This immense paper-cut tapestry, created especially for MOT, will draw visitors into a world of light and shadow.

*image (left)
Ushio Shinohara,
Unknown (Oiran series), 1966
courtesy of MOT