Shining Lights and “Swaying” Spheres at a Brand-new Art Museum in Tokyo
Immersion, interaction, and of course Instagrammability abound. The digital art of the highly popular Japanese collective teamLab now has a new location in the tallest structure in the nation.
A mirror chamber full of ethereal “wobbling” orbs and a swirling maelstrom of spotlights are just two of the brand-new pieces at the “teamLab Borderless” permanent exhibition, which opens this Friday.
They are part of a maze-like exhibit at the 330-meter Azabudai Hills building in central Tokyo, which features hundreds of other captivating exhibits, such as cascades of light and birds that dart by leaving colorful trails.
“Our goal is to touch people, and to prompt them to reflect on life and the world in a more positive way,” Toshiyuki Inoko, director of the internationally renowned teamLab collective, told AFP at a press preview on Monday. “Our work is the continuation of our past endeavors, but offers a whole new experience at the same time.”
Since its completion last year, the Azabudai Hills attraction has towered over central Tokyo. Visitors are free to stroll through the complex of artworks that blend music and projection.
Certain exhibits are mobile, moving from room to room; others are responsive, spreading petals as guests approach and rippling lights beneath them.
More than fifty pieces of art, ranging from slow-blooming flowers to a large area filled with cables that seem to be raining digital light, are on display in this show.
A large number of the exhibits were part of the 2018–2022 Tokyo Bay first “teamLab Borderless” exhibition.
With about 2.2 admissions in 2019, it holds the Guinness World Record for the most visited museum devoted to a single art group. Stars such as Will Smith and Kim Kardashian have been there.
The installations at the new “teamLab Borderless” appeal to the senses of taste and smell in addition to the senses of sight and sound. For example, green tea and ice cream are served beneath unique table projections.
People “perceive the world with their body, but these days our perception of the world is often through the internet, or television” , Inoko stated.
“So, we wanted to create an experience” that appealed to all senses, he added.
The exhibition is ideally positioned to benefit from the recent surge in Japanese tourism, as December saw a record number of visitors.
In addition to operating the “teamLab Planets” museum in Tokyo, TeamLab was established in 2011.
The collective has multiple permanent exhibitions in China in addition to showing its wildly popular artworks all over the world.
