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Tower of the Sun 1967-2018: What Did Taro Okamoto Question?
Taro Okamoto Memorial Museum
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Taro Okamoto
In March 2018, Taro Okamoto’s themed pavilion titled “Tower of the Sun,” which became the symbol of the Osaka Expo ‘70, will finally be reborn. Taking advantage of the opportunity presented by seismic retrofitting work on the tower, the long-neglected interior has been renovated and transformed into a permanent exhibition space.
This tower can be considered as a ‘living being’ with internal organs; Okamoto once stated, “”The Tree of Life” is the Tower of the Sun’s bloodstream, the folds in the interior walls are the ‘folds of its brain’.” The tower’s internal organs have been recovered and re-awoken after half a century, presenting an opportunity to once more ask ourselves, ‘What is the “Tower of the Sun”?’
This two-part exhibition will trace the fifty-year history of the tower - from 1967, when Okamoto participated as producer of Osaka’s Expo ’70, up to 2018, when the recreation of the interior will be completed - and consider Okamoto’s intentions in creating this themed pavilion.
With the full cooperation of the Kaiyodo Company, a leading manufacturer of figurines, the museum has produced a miniature three-dimensional model of the tower. All that remained of the artistic exhibition space was photographs, but this model allows viewers to re-experience it in three dimensions. It is something that has never been tried to date.
What were the questions that Okamoto confronted Japanese society with at the time? And what does it bring for us living in the present day? What will it become?
Part 1: Oct. 13 (Fri), 2017 - Feb. 18 (Sun), 2018
Part 2: Feb. 21 (Wed), 2018 - May 27 (Sun), 2018
[Related Events]
Gallery Talk
Event Dates: Oct. 18 (Wed), Nov. 16 (Thu), Dec. 14 (Thu), Jan. 18 (Thu), Feb. 14 (Wed), Mar. 15 (Thu), Apr. 19 (Thu), May 17 (Thu) 14:00-
*Event in Japanese.
This tower can be considered as a ‘living being’ with internal organs; Okamoto once stated, “”The Tree of Life” is the Tower of the Sun’s bloodstream, the folds in the interior walls are the ‘folds of its brain’.” The tower’s internal organs have been recovered and re-awoken after half a century, presenting an opportunity to once more ask ourselves, ‘What is the “Tower of the Sun”?’
This two-part exhibition will trace the fifty-year history of the tower - from 1967, when Okamoto participated as producer of Osaka’s Expo ’70, up to 2018, when the recreation of the interior will be completed - and consider Okamoto’s intentions in creating this themed pavilion.
With the full cooperation of the Kaiyodo Company, a leading manufacturer of figurines, the museum has produced a miniature three-dimensional model of the tower. All that remained of the artistic exhibition space was photographs, but this model allows viewers to re-experience it in three dimensions. It is something that has never been tried to date.
What were the questions that Okamoto confronted Japanese society with at the time? And what does it bring for us living in the present day? What will it become?
Part 1: Oct. 13 (Fri), 2017 - Feb. 18 (Sun), 2018
Part 2: Feb. 21 (Wed), 2018 - May 27 (Sun), 2018
[Related Events]
Gallery Talk
Event Dates: Oct. 18 (Wed), Nov. 16 (Thu), Dec. 14 (Thu), Jan. 18 (Thu), Feb. 14 (Wed), Mar. 15 (Thu), Apr. 19 (Thu), May 17 (Thu) 14:00-
*Event in Japanese.
Schedule | Oct 13 (Fri) 2017-May 27 (Sun) 2018 Opening Hours Information
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| Fee | Adults ¥650, Elementary School Students ¥300. | ||||
| Venue | Taro Okamoto Memorial Museum https://taro-okamoto.or.jp/en/  | ||||
| Location | 6-1-19 Minami-Aoyama, Minato-ku, Tokyo 107-0062 | ||||
| Access | 7 minute walk from exit B1 at Omotesando Station on the Ginza, Hanzomon and Chiyoda lines. 20 minute walk from the Miyamasuzaka exit of JR Shibuya Station. | ||||
| Phone | 03-3406-0801 | ||||
| Related images | Click on the image to enlarge it |
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