What to see at Roppongi Art Night 2014 – the highlights

by marc on Apr 18, 2014 News | Comments Off on What to see at Roppongi Art Night 2014 – the highlights

The fifth edition of Roppongi Art Night presents “Move Your Body!”

The Roppongi Art Night in Tokyo is putting on an all-night programme of art and culture events this April. The arts festival in its fifth edition themed “Move Your Body!” will feature exhibits, events and activities across various locations in Tokyo’s bustling Roppongi district.

The Roppongi Art Night 2014 will be held from 10am GMT+8 on Saturday 19 April to 6pm GMT+8 on Sunday 20 April 2014, with the core time of the event between sunset and sunrise. The festival integrates art into the urban life of Tokyo’s Roppongi district, contributing to its evolution through art and symbolising the city’s broader redevelopment ahead of the 2020 Olympic Games.

The artistic director of the 2014 edition is Katsuhiko Hibino, a renowned Japanese multidisciplinary artist who emphasises the physical nature of art in his works. The festival is themed “Move Your Body!” and will demonstrate art’s capacity to move the human mind and body.

Art Radar lists some highlights of this year’s all-night festival.

• “One Body” by Yoshinari Nishio – The project includes two giant patchworks made with publicly donated used clothing: People’s House, comprising twelve 4 x 9m pieces at Roppongi Hills Arena and the 2.5m-high flower-shaped Floral Prints/Flower at Tokyo Midtown; and Buttons/Rain, strings of thousands of donated buttons at The National Art Center, Tokyo.
• “Hibino Cup in Roppongi” – A friendly tournament, in connection with the 2014 FIFA World Cup, for participants of all ages using footballs, goals and uniforms made by hand.
• “Match Flag Project” – Connected to the tournament, a workshop in which participants will make a giant flag from the national flags of competing teams.

• “Roppongi Parade” – Directed by dancer Kim Ito and featuring some 140 dancers giving ojigi (bowing) performances. The parade will travel up Roppongi Street from Roppongi Hills, turning at Roppongi Crossing and going past Tokyo Midtown, then heading down Stars and Stripes Street to The National Art Center, Tokyo. Spectators will be welcome to join the dancing.
• “Andy Warhol: 15 Minutes Eternal” – Mori Art Museum, Roppongi Hills, presents a comprehensive overview of Warhol’s works from his earliest creations through his later years.
• Art Workshops – Suntory Museum of Art, Tokyo Midtown, presents “Workshop of Light and Shadows” and “Looking at a different world through the Gulliver Scope” workshops.

• “TOKYO_ANIMA!2014” – The National Art Museum, Tokyo features short anime by 15-20 young artists.
• 21_21 DESIGN SIGHT – PechaKucha “Kome: The Art of Rice” exhibition.
• Tokyo Midtown – Beer will be served in award-winning Mt. Fuji beer glasses in the first-floor Plaza, and three artists will give flower-arranging performances to music in the public space.
• Mori Tower (52nd fl.) – Andy Warhol Café is open with a midnight performance by Yasutaka Nakata who is known as a producer of Perfume and Kyary Pamyu Pamyu as a special event.

The festival is organised by the Tokyo Metropolitan Government, Arts Council Tokyo, Tokyo Culture Creation Project office (Tokyo Metropolitan Foundation for History and Culture), and the Roppongi Art Night Executive Committee, including The National Art Center (Tokyo), Suntory Museum of Art, Tokyo Midtown, 21_21 DESIGN SIGHT, Mori Building, Mori Art Museum and Ractive Roppongi.

C. A. Xuan Mai Ardia

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