A Personal View of Japanese Contemporary Art: Takahashi Ryutaro Collection at Museum of Contemporary Art Tokyo (MOT)
Many contemporary private collections are likely assembled based on a person’s sense of beauty, values, interests, desires, and beliefs. As we view these collected works, we gain a glimpse into the collector’s very way of life, which adds to the pleasure of the experience.
The Museum of Contemporary Art Tokyo is currently hosting an exhibition that allows us to appreciate each work and reflect on the period in which it was created. Despite being a private collection, its scale is impressive with approximately 3,500 pieces. This exhibition offers a moment to systematically explore various aspects of contemporary art along with the life of Mr. TAKAHASHI Ryutaro.
Unmissable Interview Video Along with the Exhibited Works
An 11-minute interview with Mr. TAKAHASHI Ryutaro, conducted by the museum’s curator Ms. YABUMAE Tomoko, is featured in the first-floor entrance hall of the Museum of Contemporary Art Tokyo and on the exhibition’s website. Although whether you choose to watch it before or after viewing the exhibition is up to you, this video provides important insights that will enhance your experience.
One particularly noteworthy moment is when Ms. YABUMAE asked, “Could you tell us why your collection is focused on Japan?” to which Mr. TAKAHASHI responded, “I want to identify the reality that I am living in Japan being here now through works of art.” This desire to connect with reality through art is one of the key reasons we enjoy contemporary art here in Tokyo.
Artists share the same era with us and live in similar societies and communities. Thus, even if our initial reaction to a work is one of confusion, we may find connections and empathy when we take the time to interact with it. Discovering these connections can be deeply gratifying.
From “Prenatal Memory” Through the Great East Japan Earthquake to the Present
On the other hand, the works on display are organized according to the era in which Mr. TAKAHASHI has lived, so visitors of different age groups may come across the atmosphere of eras they haven’t personally experienced. While the Great East Japan Earthquake is still fresh in our memories, earlier periods, such as the Zenkyoto student movement of the late 1960s, may hold less immediate significance for some viewers.
However, the works featured in this exhibition may bridge that gap. While the “Zenkyoto student movement” was once viewed iconically and with nostalgia a few decades ago, these stereotypes are now fading. Instead, the works offer new perspectives and insights into that era.
You will enjoy a diverse selection of masterpieces from a collection of approximately 3,500 pieces. The main exhibition halls are located on the 1st and B2F of the Exhibition Gallery, but there is also a satellite hall next to the NADiff Contemporary Museum store, so don’t miss it!
The following is a quote from the press release:
Outline
The Museum of Contemporary Art Tokyo (MOT) presents the exhibition “A Personal View of Japanese Contemporary Art: Takahashi Ryutaro Collection”. Presently comprising over 3,500 items, the TAKAHASHI Ryutaro Collection is reputed as one of the most important collections of Japanese contemporary art in terms of both quality and quantity. A showcase of outstanding works by artists with a highly critical mindset, this exhibition explores the state of contemporary Japan from the specific viewpoint of a 1946-born art collector.
The exhibition is modeled around the personal viewpoint of TAKAHASHI Ryutaro as one face representing postwar Japan. Born in 1946, and growing up as a spearhead of the baby boomer generation, he joined the Zenkyoto student movement, and was directly exposed to the dense mixture of culture and politics that was filling the air in Tokyo in the 1960s. From there, he went on to put effort into encouraging local medical care such as day care as a psychiatrist. From the mid-90s, when his business was stably on track, he started collecting Japanese contemporary art, and has to this day acquired a total of more than 3,500 artworks. TAKAHASHI can thus be seen as someone who has been observing the trends and currents in Japanese contemporary art from the inside, while at the same time embodying essential aspects from the position of the audience as opposed to that of the artists. In addition to works that seem to reflect the state of Japan in the 1990s and 2000s, which in a way represent the Takahashi Ryutaro Collection at large, this exhibition also focuses on a new direction that the collection took after the Great East Japan Earthquake, reflecting the changing times and values.
The time of the Takahashi Ryutaro Collection’s formation coincides with the opening of the MOT in 1995. Both collections were largely built in the city of Tokyo during the so-called “lost 30 years” after the burst of the economic bubble in Japan, and the relationship between them can be understood as mutually complementary. The artworks that were created to combat the state of stagnation in Japanese society, TAKAHASHI refers to as the “cries and living evidence of young artists.” This exhibition is an occasion that introduces one personal perspective onto the art historical currents that the MOT has been presenting, and at the same time, it is a precious opportunity that offers a comprehensive overview of essential and incisively critical works of Japanese contemporary art.
Highlights
Works by 115 individual and groups of artists, from legendary figures to promising young creators, make up a comprehensive showcase of Japanese contemporary postwar art.
As a collection that focuses mainly on Japanese contemporary art, the Takahashi Ryutaro Collection is one of the biggest of its kind in the world. Through a special selection of works, this exhibition aims to present an overview of the massive collection of over 3,500 items in total, and at once function as an introduction and definitive guide to Japanese contemporary art. Far superior to the average private art collection in terms of scale, the exhibition comprises dynamic displays that fill two entire floors of the Museum of Contemporary Art Tokyo.
Highlights from a spirited collection, selected from the viewpoint of the most prominent collector of Japanese contemporary art
Following the ”neoteny japan – Takahashi Collection” exhibition in 2008 (at Kirishima Open-Air Museum/Kagoshima and others), exhibitions of the Takahashi Ryutaro Collection, which include numerous essential works especially of Japanese contemporary art since the 1990s, have been shown repeatedly at art museums in Japan and abroad. This show of selected items traces from one collector’s “personal view” the path of the collection as it continued to change and develop, from its early days, via the period after the Great East Japan Earthquake, to the present day.
The 6 Sections of the Exhibition
1. Prenatal Memory
2. An End and A New Beginning
3. New Types of Humans
4. Breakdown and Rebirth
5. The Redefinition of “Self”
6. Back onto the Street
*Learn more from Exhibition Guide
Takahashi Ryutaro Collection
The art collection that the psychiatrist TAKAHASHI Ryutaro (1946- ) started in 1997, has grown to become one of the world’s biggest collections of Japanese contemporary art. Starting off with works by KUSAMA Yayoi and GODA Sawako, the collection comprises especially works by Japanese leading artists since the 1990s, many of whom are represented here with early and representative works. Up to now, the collection has been showcased in exhibitions at 26 public and private art museums across Japan, including the ”neoteny japan – Takahashi Collection” exhibition (2008-2010, Kirishima Open- Air Museum/Kagoshima, Ueno Royal Museum, others), and the exhibitions “Takahashi Collection: Mindfulness! (2013-2014, Nagoya City Art Museum, others) and “Takahashi Collection: Mirror Neuron (2015, Tokyo Opera City Art Gallery). In 2020, in recognition of his significant contribution to the promoting and popularization of contemporary art, TAKAHASHI received the Agency for Cultural Affairs Commissioner’s Commendation in 2020. His collection encompasses over 3,500 items, and still continues to grow around a core defined by recent trends and efforts of young artists.
Artists
SATOMI Katsuzo｜KUSAMA Yayoi｜SHINOHARA Ushio｜HANAGA Mitsutoshi｜UNO Akira｜NAKAMURA Kimpei｜TSUKASA Osamu｜YOKOO Tadanori｜AKASEGAWA Genpei｜MORIYAMA Daido｜ARAKI Nobuyoshi｜GODA Sawako｜TATEISHI Tiger｜YAMAGUCHI Harumi｜SUGA Kishio｜SORAYAMA Hajime｜NISHIMURA Yohei｜HIGASHIONNA Yuichi｜FUNAKOSHI Katsura｜MORIMURA Yasumasa｜OHTAKE Shinro｜OKAZAKI Kenjiro｜O JUN｜KOBAYASHI Masato｜MAEMOTO Shoko｜NEMOTO Takashi｜NARA Yoshitomo｜YANAGI Yukinori｜KONOIKE Tomoko｜Taro CHIEZO｜MURAKAMI Takashi｜MURASE Kyoko｜∈Y∋｜AIDA Makoto｜Oscar OIWA｜OZAWA Tsuyoshi｜YANOBE Kenji｜TENMYOUYA Hisashi｜CHIBA Kazumasa｜NISHIO Yasuyuki｜YANAGI Miwa｜KOIDE Naoki｜KATO Izumi｜KAWASHIMA Hideaki｜Mr.｜YAMAGUCHI Akira｜OKADA Hiroko｜MACHIDA Kumi｜ISHIDA Takashi｜ODANI Motohiko｜KAZAMA Sachiko｜SHIOTA Chiharu｜NINAGAWA Mika｜IKEDA Manabu｜MISE Natsunosuke｜MIYANAGA Aiko｜Kasetsu｜KATO Mika｜TAKEMURA Kei｜Tabaimo｜NAWA Kohei｜TAMAMOTO Nana｜KUNIMATSU Kineta｜TAKEKAWA Nobuaki｜DEKI Yayoi｜IMAI Shunsuke｜KANEUJI Teppei｜KUDO Makiko｜SUZUKI Hiraku｜IMAZU Kei｜KONISHI Toshiyuki｜KOBASHI Yosuke｜SHIGA Lieko｜CHIBA Masaya｜MOHRI Yuko｜AOKI Mika｜KUWATA Takuro｜UMETSU Yoichi｜Enrico Isamu OYAMA ｜SAKAMOTO Natsuko｜BABU｜MURAYAMA Goro｜MORI Osamu｜MATSUI Erina｜MATSUSHITA Tohru｜yang02 ｜AOKI Yutaka｜UMEZAWA Kazuki｜SATO Ataru｜TANIHO Reina｜DIEGO｜YUMISASHI Kanji｜KONDO Aki｜SHOJI Asami｜MITOBE Nanae｜Nile KOETTING｜KAWAUCHI Rikako｜WAKUI Tomohito｜ob｜FUJIKURA Asako｜MURAKAMI Saki｜BIEN｜ISHIGE Kenta｜Namonaki Sanemasa｜TSUCHITORI Fumika｜YAMADA Kohei｜TOMOZAWA Kotao｜YAMANAKA Yukino｜Chim↑Pom from Smappa!Group｜SIDE CORE / EVERYDAY HOLIDAY SQUAD｜KOMAKUS｜NAKAHARA Minoru*｜KUBO Mamoru*｜HACHIYA Kazuhiko*
（*from the collection of Museum of Contemporary Art Tokyo）
| Title | A Personal View of Japanese Contemporary Art: Takahashi Ryutaro Collection |
| Period | Saturday, 3 August – Sunday, 10 November 2024 |
| Venue | Museum of Contemporary Art Tokyo, Exhibition Gallery 1F/B2F, Foyer |
| Address | 4-1-1 Miyoshi, Koto-ku, Tokyo 135-0022 Japan |
| Official Website | https://www.mot-art-museum.jp/en/exhibitions/TRC/ |
| Opening Hours | 10 AM – 6 PM (Tickets available until 30 minutes before closing.) *Open until 9 PM on Fridays in August |
| Closed | Mondays (except 16 Sep., 23 Sep., 14 Oct., Nov 4.) 17 Sep., 24 Sep., 15 Oct., 5 Nov. |
| Online Ticket | See Online Ticket website |
| Admission | Adults – 2,100 yen University & College Students, Over 65 – 1,350 yen High school & Junior High School Students – 840 yen Elementary School Students & Younger – free |
| Notes | *20% discount for a group of over 20 people. *Ticket includes admission to the MOT Collection exhibition. *Persons with a Physical Disability Certificate, Intellectual Disability Certificate, Intellectual Disability Welfare Certificate, or Atomic Bomb Survivor Welfare Certificate as well as up to two attendants are admitted free of charge.[Silver Day] Those over 65 years old receive free admission on the third Wednesday of every month by presenting proof of age at the ticket counter. [Summer Night Museum 2024] Special discount for admissions after 5 PM on August 9, 16, 23 and 30. Students: Free with valid identification / Adults & over 65: 20% discount with valid identification [Students Day supported by Bloomberg] Students can view the exhibition for free by presenting a valid ID at the museum’s ticket counter on September 7 and 8. |