The Whispering Land: Artists in Correspondence with Nature at TOKYO METROPOLITAN ART MUSEUM

Even in Tokyo and the metropolitan area where we live, we are surrounded by nature—trees, animals, and weather events like heavy rain and snow that can disrupt city life. However, it’s not always easy to feel connected to nature or to remember that we coexist with it.
The current exhibition at the Tokyo Metropolitan Art Museum, “The Whispering Land: Artists Connecting with Nature,” reminds us of the presence of the earth, which is becoming harder to feel in our human-centered lives.

Remarkable Creative Processes of Each Artist

The five contemporary artists in this exhibition have chosen to leave city life behind and immerse themselves in rich, wild natural environments. Each artist’s exhibit also includes materials that document their creative process, events, and daily life. We recommend you take a look.

Sometimes, when we see a work of art that truly captures nature, we might compare it to things we’ve seen on TV or the Internet, rather than appreciating it on its own.

However, the artists and works in this exhibition are so unique and insightful that they will challenge any preconceptions. As you explore the materials and captions, you’ll discover new things, so take your time and enjoy the experience.

Another reason we enjoy this exhibition is the variety of perspectives and techniques used by the artists. Each work seems to vividly express the artist’s thoughts and feelings. As we view these pieces, we should reflect on what it means to live in Tokyo and how we experience and sense things in our daily lives.

The following is a quote from the press release:

Outline

This exhibition will feature five artists whose art springs from a deep engagement with nature. Their works depicting wild animals, mountain people’s livelihoods, landscape and vegetation transformation, the radiance of life, and the wonder of nature all brim with the fresh joy of living with nature. At the same time, they evoke nature with teeth bared and claws unsheathed, engaged in resilient strategies for survival, and the sense of awe and respect for nature’s immense power we tend to lose in sheltered city life. Their works, born not from remote wilderness but places where people’s lives and nature are inextricably entwined, question the relationship between human beings and nature.

In ancient times, people kept eyes and ears attuned to the workings of nature and developed ways of coexisting with it for centuries. Artworks by artists who push into the backcountry, experience fear and wonder, and open themselves to the spirit of the land have a power to convey the voices of the land we can no longer hear in our human-centered lifestyle. The world of people who live close to nature, experienced through the keen senses of artists responsive to nature’s subtle signs and whispers, can awaken our own sense of wonder.

Featured artists (in alphabetical order)：
Yuichi Enomoto, Haruka Furusaka, Kiichi Kawamura, Mitsuko Kurashina, mirocomachiko

Features

The joy of living with nature

Artists who have left the city to live alongside the rich blessings of nature. Kawamura Kiichi’s photographic works—capturing daily life in the Shiretoko forests with a new arrival’s fresh eye—and Enomoto Yuichi’s lucid impressions of Nemuro’s icy cold landscapes will transmit the freshness and vigor of nature to the Tokyo exhibition galleries.

New Works created for the galleries

With the Museum’s distinctive, large galleries in mind, mirocomachiko is creating an installation inspired by Amami Oshima, an island alive with the murmur of living things. Furusaka Haruka, employing lacquer from her region of research, is crafting 15 large woodblock prints that will bring an Aomori forest grove alive in the venue.

Wide-ranging works by five contemporary artists

Kurashina Mitsuko’s finely detailed paintings capture transformations caused in vegetation by the Great East Japan Earthquake and tsunami, and post-tsunami reconstruction work. Through these and other works by five contemporary artists—including photographs, woodblock prints, oil paintings, watercolors, and installations—the exhibition will reexamine human beings’ relationship with nature from various angles.

Yuichi Enomoto

Haruka Furusaka

Kiichi Kawamura

Mitsuko Kurashina

mirocomachiko

Title	The Whispering Land: Artists in Correspondence with Nature
Period	July 20 (Sat) – October 9 (Wed), 2024
Venue	Tokyo Metropolitan Art Museum Gallery A, B, C
Address	8-36 Ueno-Park Taito-ku, Tokyo 110-0007
Official Website	https://www.tobikan.jp/daichinimimi/about_en.html
Opening Hours	9:30AM – 5:30PM (Last admission 5:00PM), Fridays 9:30AM – 8:00PM (Last admission 7:30PM)
Closed	Mondays, September 17 (Tue) and 24 (Tue) (Open the Mondays of September 16 and 23)
Admission	General ¥1,100 College students ¥700 Seniors 65+ ¥800 ※Visitors of high-school age and younger will be admitted free.
Notes	※Admission free for visitors (and one accompanying person) with a Physical Disability Certificate, Intellectual Disability Certificate, Rehabilitation Certificate, Mental Disability Certificate or Atomic Bomb Survivor’s Certificate. ※High-school and university students, seniors 65 and older, and visitors with certificates are asked to show identification. ※Free admission for everyone on “Tokyo Citizens’ Day”, Oct 1 (Tue). ＊Cannot be combined with any other discount.