Visits to galleries and museums add colour to travel itineraries and inspire and amaze all who experience their multi-sensory exhibits. This is especially true when traveling in Japan, where even the architecture speaks to the profound imagination of the country’s creative minds. An art-themed tour of Japan can lead you through the most beautiful nature and the most dazzling traditions to the most exciting avant-garde visions.

 

Below, we’ve crafted a quick guide to some of Japan’s most awe-inspiring art exhibits. While the core feature of this month’s newsletter is art, we’ll also be sharing two exciting announcements in our News Updates Section: the reopening of MIMARU in Kyoto, and the impending Next Stop: Japan event, set to be held in Toronto’s Union Station. Ready? Read on below!

 

 

teamLab Planets

teamLab, The Infinite Crystal Universe, 2018, Interactive Installation of Light Sculpture, LED, Endless, Sound:

teamLab © teamLab, courtesy Pace Gallery

Tokyo boasts galleries of the most renowned Japanese artists - from Takashi Murakami with his colourful flower faces to the Ghibli Museum for enthusiasts of Hayao Miyazaki’s world-famous films. Tokyo’s teamLab Planets was recently recognized as “Asia’s Leading Attraction” at the World Travel Awards 2023. This immersive experience is a selfie wonderland that makes artists of us all. Colours rain down and borders melt as guests journey through surrealistic soundscapes enveloped in psychedelic landscapes. Here you can perch in a nest in space while being visually blasted by a laser light show, or wade in a pool of ethereal lily pads while refracting light with your hands. It's mind-blowing…and just the tip of the iceberg. Beyond Tokyo, you’ll find plenty of regional art to appreciate, in places such as:

 

Naoshima

The Adachi Museum of Art in Shimane Prefecture has been recognized by the Journal of Japanese Gardening as Japan’s number-one garden for the past twenty consecutive years. Every pebble, every leaf, every blade of grass is immaculately maintained. Along the winding path, each vantage point is more breathtaking than the one before. The long narrow windows of the garden teahouse appear as poetic hanging scrolls. It’s as if the Gods and the gardeners fell in love. You could stare at this landscape all day knowing that you’re gazing upon Japan's most captivating display of horticulture.

 

Nebuta Museum Wa Rasse 

Aomori Prefecture’s Nebuta Museum Wa Rasse houses a gallery of illuminated floats from the Aomori Nebuta festival. Incredibly elaborate constructions depicting mythical warriors in dramatic battle scenes are made of intricately designed paper lanterns that represent a thousand years of ancient Japanese legends. The floats are massive, and exhibits introduce you to every aspect of this renowned festival. Interactive experiences include taiko drumming and a “Haneto” experience, where you can dance to Hayashi music like a high-energy Haneto dancer. There is also a hands-on Nebuta experience in which you can feel what a real Nebuta is like, or make your own digital design on a touch-screen and watch it come to life.  

 

Sapporo Art Museum 

 

Nestled within a picturesque pocket of nature, the Sapporo Art Museum includes the works of local artists  and engages in art-related research. The adjacent Sapporo Art Park punctuates the rolling green landscape with sculptures that change appearance depending on your angle and the season you’re viewing them, making a leisurely stroll through the park a viscerally interactive and intellectually stimulating experience. Both the Garden and Museum feature special and permanent exhibits of sculptures, as well as musical and theatrical productions, and educational projects in which you can experience traditional Japanese crafts such as pottery, dying, weaving, woodworking and block prints.

 

Each prefecture in Japan offers galleries of Japanese and international artwork, and their architecture sets an immediately pleasing tone. These experiences enable you to be immersed in the rich and vibrant cultural expressions of Japan’s ancient traditions as well as the animation, technology and imagination of the leading artists of tomorrow. 

Canadians looking to experience Japanese culture close to home will enjoy just such an opportunity when Next Stop: Japan takes over Toronto’s Union Station from November 1st to 4th.

 

The west wing and B2 levels of Union are set to be transformed into a vibrant marketplace, replicating the Japanese "Ekinaka" concept of inner-station entertainment and retail.  The event will showcase Japanese vendors, cultural performances, captivating art, and of course, plenty of mouthwatering food.

 

From 11 a.m. to 7 p.m. each day, guests can expect 10 to 15 unique vendors (including UNIQLO, Aburi Restaurants, Yamaha, Hattendo, Momo Tea, and more) and a premium Sake tasting at the LCBO on B2.

 

For more information and a list of participating vendors, visit NextStop:Japan 

 

Cosmos Hotel Management Co. Reopens Apartment Hotel MIMARU Kyoto Kawaramachi Gojo

C) Pokemon. (C) Nintendo/Creatures Inc./GAME FREAK inc.TM, (R), and character names are trademarks of Nintendo

 

Just in time for Kyoto’s colourful Fall season, MIMARU Kyoto Kawaramachi Gojo has officially reopened as of October 1st, 2023. The largest of the seven MIMARU properties in Kyoto at 96 rooms, the Kawaramachi Gojo offers a vast selection of room types to fit families or travel groups of all sizes - including its globally beloved, Pokémon-theme rooms. With expert, multi-lingual staff dedicated to helping visitors discover the signature experiences of Japan, this amenity-rich hotel now also provides a luggage-storage service to better accommodate multiple reservations and long-term trips.

 

Reservations for stays during Kyoto’s autumn colours season are still available. For more information on MIMARU properties, visit https://mimaruhotels.com/en/.

 

Japan National Tourism Organization 

55 York Street, Suite 202

Toronto, Ontario M5J 1R7

Phone: 416-366-7140

Email: info_toronto@jnto.go.jp

www.japan.travel/en/ca/