Yoshitomo Nara: The Beginning Place
Movie: Hidekazu Sato
Aomori Museum of Art’s second solo exhibition by Nara Yoshitomo (1959-), an internationally acclaimed artist from Hirosaki City, Aomori Prefecture. Held ten years after his first solo exhibition, which attracted about 80,000 visitors, this exhibition will reflect on Nara’s activities in the past 12 years since the 2011 Tōhoku earthquake and tsunami, as well as presenting some of his notable works from as far back as his student days. It will invite visitors into overlapping layers of Nara’s paintings and take them through an exhibition space that weaves between the past and the present, continuing outside the museum to the landscape of his hometown.
This unique exhibition will be held exclusively by our museum, which has been collecting Nara Yoshitomo’s works since the 1990s and boasts the world’s largest collection of them.
ArtworkⒸYoshitomo Nara PhotoⒸRyoichi Kawajiri
Details
Exhibition
Oct. 14, 2023 – Feb. 25, 2024
Closed
Every 2nd and 4th Monday of month (except national holidays, when closed following Tuesday instead) and Dec. 25, 2023 – Jan. 1st, 2024
Opening hours:
9:30 – 17:00 (Last admission 16:30)
*On Sat 21st October, Sat 18th November, Sat 9th December and Sat 20th January (2024), the museum will be open until 20:00 for night at the museum events (last admission 19:30)
Organizer
Yoshitomo Nara Exhibition 2023 Executive Committee(Aomori Museum of Art,The To-o Nippo Press Co.,Ltd., Aomori Broadcating Corporation, Aomori Television Broadcasting Co., Ltd., Asahi Broadcasting Aomori Co., Ltd., Aomori Prefectural Organization for Tourism and Globalization)
Planning Cooperation
The Yoshitomo Nara Foundation,General Incoporated Foundation
Cooperation
ABEISM CORPORATION,Blum & Poe,Pace Gallery, YAMATO TRANSPORT
Academic Cooperation
KURAYA Mika(Yokohama Museum of Art)
Sponsorship
Aomori Cable Television,Aomori Fm Broadcasting,THE DAILY TOHOKU SHIMBUN,THE MUTSU SHIMPO,The Aomori Prefectural Board of Education,The Aomori City Board of Education
Admission
Ticket
Admission(Advance tickets, web tickets, group rates)
Adults -1,500yen(1,300yen)
Students(high school students and college students) -1,000yen(800yen)
Children(Junior high school students and under) -Free
*Web tickets are subject to an additional system usage fee of 165 yen.
https://www.gettiis.jp/event/detail/100007/nara
*Visitors with disabilities Free
Apple Crate Premium Ticket (sold out)
Price: 3,000 yen (tax included)
This ticket is made by reusing scrap wood from an actual apple box. Please note that the texture of the original wood, stains on the board, chalk and nail marks, and knots in the wood from the time of use have been preserved.
Exhibition Structure
Exhibition Layout
1. House
We will explore the significance of the “house” motif that often appears in Nara’s art by tracing the evolution of his early works.
Yoshitomo Nara, Merry-Go-Round, 1987, acrylic on canvas, 130.3 x 130.3 cm, private collection
※The two exhibits in this section will be replaced as follows.
【Oct. 14, 2023 – Dec. 24, 2023】
Dream Time, 1988, Acrylic and colored pencil on canvas, 116.7×90.9cm, Collection of Toyota Municipal Museum of Art
Drawings, 1988, Acrylic, colored pencil, pencil, pen and rubber stamp on paper, Each 21×14.5cm, Collection of Toyota Municipal Museum of Art
【Jan. 2, 2024 – Feb. 25, 2024】
Romantic Catastrophe, 1988, Acrylic and colored pencil on canvas, 116.7×90.9cm, Private Collection(entrusted to Toyota Municipal Museum of Art)
Untitled, 1988, Acrylic and colored pencil on paper, 85×99cm, Private Collection(entrusted to Toyota Municipal Museum of Art)
2. Layers of Time and Space
Through his recent paintings and drawings, we will highlight the importance of layers in Nara’s work.
Yoshitomo Nara, Hazy Humid Day, 2021, acrylic on canvas, 220 x 195 cm, courtesy of the artist
3. Journey
We will introduce a range of expressions—including photography and pottery—born from Nara’s recent travels to seek out the origins of his sensibilities.
Yoshitomo Nara, SAKHALIN, 2014, photograph, courtesy of the artist
4. NO WAR
We will consider the relationship between music and his anti-war themes as well as the power of Nara’s works as they permeate society.
Yoshitomo Nara,No Nukes, 1998, acrylic and colored pencils on paper,36×22.5cm,private collection(NAGASE Masayuki)
5. The Small Community of Rock Cafe “33 1/3”
By recreating the rock cafe Nara frequented during high school, we will reflect on the place where Nara’s creative process began.
Yoshitomo Nara (right) and friends in front of Rock Cafe “33 1/3” (Hirosaki), 1977
Yoshitomo Nara’s playlist for the <Rock Café “33 1/3” and a Small Community> → (PDF File)
