The lifestyle hotel chain ESTINATE HOTEL’s Okinawa Naha branch will turn 6-years-old on August 7, and to celebrate, it will hold a special event in collaboration with the character designer Ryu Ambe from August 6-15. This will be Ambe’s first-ever exhibition where his work will be sold in-person.

Pottery in Shujiro Castle Park

“Shima Map” design by Ryu Ambe to be used on posters and t-shirts

ESTINATE HOTEL has welcomed people from all regions of Japan over the years. It has held many events including one two years ago with the theme “Meet Local” and another last year themed on “Feel Global.” This year, the catchphrase is “Hello New World” which hopes to encourage people to discover new things by meeting the locals of Okinawa through the medium of art.

Ryu Ambe has a unique designer reminiscent of American comics. For this event, he has created the “Shima Map” which will be used on a variety of merchandise such as 30 limited-edition silk screen posters. There are also pottery pieces inspired by the sea life found in Okinawa’s oceans, amongst other art works.

Japanese digital art collective teamLab has announced their plans to set up a public art exhibition at Chiba Art Festival 2021 which will take place at Chiba Port Park from July 31 to September 5.

Autonomous Resonating Life and Resonating Trees, teamLab, 2017.

team lab will be showcasing their interactive ovoid digital art exhibit Autonomous Resonating Life and Resonating Trees. The art group describes the work: ” The resisting and resonating ovoids placed amongst the trees shine. The light of the ovoids and the light of the trees are autonomous: they shine brightly and then fade slowly, as though they are breathing. When an ovoid is pushed, the colour of the light it emits changes and the tone unique to that color echos. The light that originated from that ovoid resonates out to other ovoids and trees nearby. The tone resonates out continuously in the same way as the light, spreading throughout the ovoids and trees.”

Chiba Art Festival is one of several cultural programs hosted by Chiba Prefecture. The Tokyo Olympics and Paralympics are not solely for enjoying sports; they’re also an opportunity to enjoy the culture of Japan, and so the country is running many different cultural events across and around the capital. The theme of the festival is to showcase artwork that the city wishes to pass on to the next generation. Many pieces are being displayed around Chiba, including at the Chiba Prefectural Museum of Art, such as illustrations, photos, and more.

Matsuya Ginza opened its POKÉMON COLORS exhibition on July 22 which is set to run until August 11. The event is a kaleidoscope of bright colours and shapes of Pokémon and Pokémon motifs, with four activities and one installation to enjoy, as well as 160 original pieces of merchandise for fans to buy.

Logo mark

Art Deli Key Visual | ¥4,400

Pikachu Design Pouches – Assorted Pokémon Design Pouches | Small: ¥1,650 Each, Large ¥3,300 Each

Get your hands on a range of vivid and stylish Pokémon items, take photos at the many different photo spots dotted around the event, and learn the latest news about the Pokémon franchise.

Indigo dye art piece

Dangling from the first floor atrium is a 20-meter Pokémon art piece made by the dye group BUAISOU who used the traditional Japanese art of indigo dyeing to create it.

©2021 Pokémon. ©1995-2021 Nintendo/Creatures Inc./GAME FREAK inc.
ポケットモンスター・ポケモン・Pokémonは任天堂・クリーチャーズ・ゲームフリークの登録商標です。

The Shinjuku-based cultural facility Bunkamura is currently promoting French culture and art as part of its monthly event which focus on different countries each month. Titled Bunkamura Bon Bon – Bunkamura France Monthly 2021 –, the event features artwork and commentary by Japanese graphic designer Atsuhi Ito as well as a Paris-themed menu.

Artwork on the walls at Bunkamura

Artwork on the columns at Bunkamura

Wagon Shop | Running: July 10, 2021 – July 18, 2021

Performance by Jester | Running: July 17, 2021 – July 18, 2021

The title of the artwork decorating the inside of Bunkamura is PLAYTIME and is a collaboration with MAPP_, an art project group known for their diverse artwork including the use of project mapping. The designs were created by graphic designer Atsuhi Ito who has captured the essence of Paris. The facility’s cafe is also serving up a special French inspired menu with bistro classics to seasonal fish, summer vegetables, and more.

Atsuhi Ito | Comment

“The inside of Bunkamura is decorated with fictitious Paris artwork with life-size illustrations on the walls, columns, elevator and elsewhere. We’re living in a time right now where we can’t just freely go abroad, so I hope with this people can find something nostalgic about Paris, snap some photos, and feel like they’re on a fun trip.”
パリの街並みを感じることができるアートワークやイベントをチェックしてみては？

The UT GRAND PRIX (UTGP) is a design competition that started in 2005. The contest uses the T-shirt as a creative medium and invites everyone to freely express their creativity. This year, the competition is themed on the Peanuts comic strips by Charles M. Schulz which first hit the scene in the US back in 1950, over a hundred years ago.

Create your own Peanuts tee design

Artists are invited to unleash their imagination and bring their own Peanuts creations to life using UNIQLO’s UT brand as their canvas. Designs will be judged by the Charles M. Schulz Museum and a team of Charles M. Schulz creative associates.

An internship at the Peanuts studio

The Grand Prize is $20,000 and all winning designs will become products sold in UNIQLO stores worldwide in the summer of 2022. The winners of the top two prizes will be invited to the USA. There will also be an internship opportunity to be a member of the Charles M. Schulz creative associates team.

Sign up to the competition and submit your entry for the chance of your artwork being featured worldwide.

Tokyo Midtown’s annual MIDTOWN ART PALETTE has returned again for the summer, opening on July 16 and running until September 5. This year, the event delivers a Digital Art Garden with gorgeous dream-like digital artwork.

Digital Art Garden

Last year’s event

Experience a distinctively Japanese way to stay cool and refreshed on a wooden veranda with light and mist dancing through the outdoor space inspired by traditional Japanese rock gardens. Find yourself bewitched by an enchanting summer evening as the digital art transforms throughout the day.

This year’s event is being held with all proper social distancing measures in place.

Take digital art home with you with AR fireworks

Locate five QR codes dotted around Tokyo Midtown which when accessed via your smartphone will award you with artistic AR fireworks, allowing you to enjoy fireworks with you wherever you point the camera on your screen, including at home.

Sanrio’s popular character duo Kiki & Lala, also known as the Little Twin Stars, are have brought their dreamy, pastel-coloured world to Tokyo Tower with a special summer event titled “Little Twin Stars Summer Night Fantasy Meets Kiki & Lala Exhibition produced by LIDDELL” which began on July 10.

At the event entrance, guests are given a special ‘passport’ notebook which is stamped before entering, allowing access to Kiki & Lala’s world in the clouds above.

Guests are guided by Kiki & Lala’s voice through the rose-coloured “Star & Rose-Coloured Cloud Fantasy Gate” were they are met with five different booths.

At Kiki’s Star Catching booth, visitors can experience one of Kiki’s favourite past times by ‘catching’ stars. The stars that are caught can be taken home as a fun memory.

There’s also the Starry Sky Light Shower booth which is decorated with mirror balls that reflect the light as well as a wall featuring words and phrases said by the twins, the pink and light blue-coloured Kiki & Lala’s Playroom where you can snap cute photos, the Glittering Moviegenic booth which uses your smartphone to watch an animation of Kiki & Lala, and more.

Fans of the twins can enjoy an exhibit of various artworks too, including the 8-meter tall Fantasy Wall which depicts the world above the clouds.

The day before the exhibition began, on July 9, Tokyo Tower was lit up in blue and pink Kiki & Lala colours from 19:30 to midnight. It was a special one-night experience.

If you’re in Tokyo this summer, soar up high into Kiki & Lala’s world at Tokyo Tower.

©‘21 SANRIO 著作（株）サンリオ

Japanese creative company NAKED opened its ‘NAKED SKY CRUISING’ projection mapping performance at Chubu Electric Power MIRAI TOWER’s observation deck on July 1.

NAKED has used its projection mapping technology at towers and observation decks up and down Japan such as Tokyo Tower, Abeno Harukas, and Sapporo TV Tower, combining it with each location’s nightscape and catering each performance to the seasons at various themes. Chubu Electric Power MIRAI TOWER has hosted seven night-themed experiences at its observation deck to date, but NIGHT SKY CRUISING is the first one to be held after the tower underwent refurbishment in September 2020.

Visitors can enjoy a magical projection mapping show on the tower windows with Nagoya’s incredible evening city view in the background.

teamLab Planets TOKYO revealed two brand new, original blue-coloured phalaenopsis aphrodite orchids on July 8 as part of its new Floating Flower Garden exhibit. The flowers are the first of its kind in the world and there are no plans for it to be sold, meaning the only way to see them is by visiting the Tokyo-based digital art museum.

Unique, never-before-seen orchids

teamLab has named the flowers Phal.‘teamLab Sunshine Star’ and Phal.‘teamLab Moonlight Star’ in cooperation with Haruhiko Kato of the Lama Orchids Center.

The flower enjoys a full bloom for around a month. The reason why this orchid is so special is because until recently only four types of phalaenopsis had been found to be blue. The fifth, Phal.lueddemanniana coerulea, was discovered in recent years, and this brand new version was born from it.

The teamLab: FIRE smartphone app lets you take flames home

The new app ‘teamLab: FIRE’ has been created for teamLab Planets TOKYO’s Universe of Fire Particles – Continuity exhibit which lets you enjoy the piece on the go. When you launch the app and approach a specific artwork or a fire held by another person, your smartphone will light up with flames. When you bring the flame close to another person’s teamLab: FIRE, the flame will connect. As you connect the flame you received with another person, and they connect that flame with someone else, the flame will spread all over the world.

Drawing on the Water Surface Created by the Dance of Koi and People – Infinity

The museum’s Drawing on the Water Surface Created by the Dance of Koi and People – Infinity exhibit will transform into bright colours for the summer season from July 21 to August 6. The digital artwork sees koi swim on the surface of water that stretches out into infinity. Visitors can walk into the water. The movement of the koi is influenced by the presence of people in the water and also other koi. When the fish collide with people they turn into flowers and scatter.

Japanese design company Jiyujin launched its new Satoyama Jujo THE HOUSE chain of accommodations this month which offer a single group of guests a one-night stay in an entire house.

The first branch to open is IZUMI which features a fully-renovated Japanese-style house located in the city of Uonuma in Niigata. A gorgeous outlook is offered from the house with an unbroken view of lush forests, rice fields, and Mt. Makihata, which is listed as one of the ‘100 Famous Japanese Mountains.’

A breathtaking view awaits guests from the open-air bath

The spacious living room

Fully renovated from a 150-year-old private house, the building is supported by beautiful wooden beams and columns, and in the middle the oe, a sunken hearth. This, along with the beams and sashigamoi joints, are made from keyaki Japanese zelkova which is an elm-like tree. This species of tree is rare even in a tree-covered region such as Uonuma. The lumber used for this house was cut, preserved, and dried out for a number of decades before being processed into building material for the house. The heart in the middle of the living room is reminiscent of a time when large families would gather around one and serves to recreate that lifestyle.

The Nishiyama region is known for is production of delicious rice. IZUMI in fact looks out over Kabanosawa, a special and important place of rice production in Nishiyama. This vantage point also gives guests an opportunity to appreciate the hot and cold temperatures of the daytime and evening, the rivers, the shape of the land, and the earth the city sits on. The drastic change in temperatures in the day and night are especially noteworthy as this, along with the basin between the mountains, gives rise to a sea of clouds.

IZUMI sits on a hill that overlooks the rice paddies, making it a perfect location for spotting the sea of clouds. Minamiuonuma’s sea of clouds has over a 70% chances of appearing in the autumn and spring seasons.

The number one reason why Japan’s old, long-standing, and precious private houses are demolished is due to the cold getting in and it being too dark inside. Even those who want to see them preserved for tradition, including those who live in them already, would rather live in a modern home. That’s why Jiyujin has begun a renovation project instead of a demolition one. By refurbishing the houses, the ancient framework can be fixed up and preserved while a range of contemporary amenities are incorporate to fit with modern lifestyles. The Satoyama Jujo accommodations are built so they can be used for over 100 years.

For dinner, there are three options for guests. The first is a dinner at SANABURI which earned itself a Michelin star in Michelin Guide Niigata 2020. The second is a meal at a restaurant that earned the status of Bib Gourmand in the same guide. The third is to prepare your own meal in the house. There are plenty of shops around the station nearby where you can buy local ingredients.

After a delicious meal, guests can take a soak in the open-air tub and enjoy gazing out across the fields and the beautiful mountains which stand almost 2,000 meters high.

teamLab Forest Fukuoka is getting a makeover for the summer season from July 17. Look out for seasonal digital installations including a bed of bright yellow sunflowers, animals made of summer flowers walking around, and more.

Summer Digital Artworks

Shifting Valley, Living Creatures of Flowers, Symbiotic Lives

Animals of Flowers, Symbiotic Lives II

Soft Terrain and Granular Topography, 2020

Flutter of Butterflies, Ephemeral Life

For summertime only, teamLab’s Athletics Forest presents Shifting Valley, Living Creatures of Flowers, Symbiotic Lives – A Whole Year per Year where various animals made from seasonal flowers, such as sunflowers, roam the area. There’s also A Whole Year per Year / Soft Terrain and Granular Topography – A Whole Year per Year where visitors can see varying levels of three-dimensional soft terrain, and Flutter of Butterflies, Ephemeral Life – A Whole Year per Year, where butterflies flutter in summer colours.

The teamLab Athletics Forest and Catching and Collecting Forest are new museums by teamLab. In the Athletics Forest, visitors use three-dimensional thinking using the body, while in the Catching and Collecting Forest, they capture the wonder of catching and collecting things as children.

 
teamLab’s artworks are not pre-recorded images that are played back; they are created by a computer program that continuously renders the artwork in real time. As a whole, they are continuously changing, and previous visual states are never replicated. The picture at this moment can never be seen again.

Japanese men’s brand TENEO and Shibakusa Pottery, which was founded in 1841 in Hida-Takayama, are set to begin their first exhibition tour on July 9 which aims to make traditional Japanese craftsmanship part of our modern lives as contemporary art.

FULL HAND MADE with HAMAMOTO 

TENEO is rooted in the concept of combining and evolving the differing cultures and backgrounds of Japan and France. Shibakusa Pottery has been producing pottery in Gifu’s city of Takayama since the Edo Period and operates on the motto of “Handing down tradition is on the decline; tradition is the continuation of innovation.” Both TENO and SHibakusa have come together to launch a project that aims to develop and advance traditional craftsmanship, and so they are opening a series of exhibition pop-up shops beginning at DiEGO Omotesando in Tokyo on July 9 before heading to Discover Japan Lab. in Shibuya PARCO, g GIFT AND LIFESTYLE in Roppoingi Hills, and elsewhere.

Pre-orders for the products to be showcased at the pop-up shop are now available to pre-order online in Japan at TENEO and will be shipped in October. Exhibits include works by the young bonsai master Yusuke Hamamoto, flower arrangements Ayayoshi Ozono who maintains long-time traditional Japanese styles and techniques, and more.

The project will  collaborate with the international tattoo artist Hiro in October as well as many other traditional artists and craftsmen from inside and outside Japan. The pop-up shop also sees the release of the ‘GAS MASK POT/VASE.’ The purpose of these works is to show people new forms and ways of expressing tradition.