Art Scope, a mécénat activity of Daimler Foundation in Japan, provides contemporary artists from Japan and Germany the chance to experience life in each other’s country. For the 2007/2008 year, Izumi Kato and Yuken Teruya were invited to reside in Berlin and Eve Teppe and Ascan Pinckernelle in Tokyo. The Hara Museum has been a partner in the Art Scope program since 2003, and as such will once again host an exhibition to showcase the results of this year’s artistic exchange. The methodologies used by the four featured artists range from painting, sculpture, installation, video and drawing. Izumi Kato creates paintings and sculptures that seem to touch upon the root of life and existence, using as his motif human figures with apparently fetal-like aspects. Yuken Teruya uses a variety of materials that include ready-made objects to make installations that speak to the workings of human society, the roots of human values and the sense of aesthetic beauty. The video artist Eva Teppe uses image media to explore the essence behind our sensory awareness and consciousness. In drawings of great detail and delicacy, Ascan Pinckernelle revisits the fundamentals of expression through the process of observation with the eye and representation with the hand. Different though these four artists may be in methodology and personality, their sensibilities, imagination and power of expression give rise to a shared ability to train their sights upon human existence and make us reconsider the ambiguous and complex properties that are fundamental to our lives as both discrete individuals and members of a larger whole. Through it all one might find a hint of the many possibilities that lie hidden in the act of creation and the experience of viewing. Artist Talk Date: June 28th (Sat) 15:00 - 17:00 (tentative) Place: The Hall at the Hara Museum of Contemporary Art For reservations, contact: info@haramuseum.or.jp or (Tel.) 03-3445-0669 Speakers (to be scheduled): Izumi Kato, Yuken Teruya, Eva Teppe, Ascan Pinckernelle, Dr. Renate Wiehager (Senior Manager, Corporate Art Department, Daimler AG), Atsuo Yasuda (Hara Museum of Contemporary Art) Fee: Regular ¥2000 (includes museum admission), Hara Museum Members and up to two guests ¥1000 Reservation required: info@haramuseum.or.jp, or Tel: 03-3445-0669 starting from June 10th (Tue) [Image: Eva Teppe, "The World Is Everything That Is The Case" (2003), video still, courtesy of the artist]

Throughout the history of Japanese art, each generation of painters, Buddhist sculptors, potters and other artists studied the works of the masters among their contemporaries as well as their predecessors in the field to create the masterpieces over time. Comparing artworks by master artists reveals fascinating details of similarity and contrast. The visual arts of each generation flourished and were enriched by rivalry between distinguished talents. A total of approximately 100 works of well-known masterpieces and sublime works by the artists will be on view, including more than 10 objects designated as National Treasures and approximately 40 works designated as Important Cultural Properties.

In the year of the Olympics being held in Beijing, the museum is holding a special exhibition of the textual treasures stored in the National Palace Museum, Beijing. The items on display include the Shenlongbanyinben, a copy of the Lanting Xu, one of the finest works of Wang Xizhi [the first time his work has ever been displayed overseas]. While tracing the history of these masterpieces, which are regarded as articles par excellence even among Chinese calligraphy, the viewer can also see the influence which Chinese calligraphy have had on Japan.

1. Opening Talk April 26th (Sat) 17:00-18:00 Speaker: Fabrice Hyber Hyber will speak about the exhibition theme of "growing seeds," his recent activities, as well as the farms he has helped to build in Vendée. Fee: ¥1500 (Watari-Um museum supporters and members free) 2. "Seed and Grow" exhibition talk 1st session: May 17th (Sat) 19:00-21:00 "The 21st century is the age of farming" Speaker: Isoya Shinji (Tokyo Agricultural University) Agriculturalization of our cities. Coexistence of humans and nature. 2nd session: June 21st (Sat) "Where will we go to live? Urban agriculture" Speaker: Yoshitaka Shiraishi (Shirashi Farm) Runs the experiential farm "Kaze no Kakko" in Nerima Ward, Tokyo. Conducts activities linking the local people to each other through farming and agriculture. Shiraishi will speak about the importance of local farming and procurement of ingredients. "In Search of the original 'Farm'" Speaker: Shinji Abe (Tsubura Farm) Born in Tokyo and raised in Yokohama, Abe will talk about how he got acquainted with farming despite an urban, salaryman existence. 3rd session: July 5th (Sat) "About Tokyo today" Speaker: Michihiko Yanai (creative director) Established "Kaze to Rokku" in 2003 after working in advertising. A practiced copywriter, Yanai will speak on the future of Tokyo. Fee: ¥2000 per talk (Watari-Um Museum supporters ¥1000, normal members ¥1600) Season pass for all three talks: ¥4800 (Watari-Um Museum supporters ¥2400, normal members ¥3840) 3. "Lunch in a vegetable field" tour July 21st (Mon, national holiday) Speaker: Yoshitaka Shiraishi (Shiraishi farm) Visit to Shiraishi's "Wind School" experiential farm. First-hand experience of how vegetables are grown. The tour will conclude with a delicious vegetable lunch. Fee: ¥2500 + lunch fee (about ¥1800), limited to 28 people. August 8th (Fri) 19:00-21:00 "Bees are our bridge to nature" Speaker: Mitsuo Matsuka (Tamgawa University) Bees visit flowers, gathering pollen and making hives. From bees and royal jelly gathered from hive boxes, this talk introduces this living agricultural product. Fee: ¥800 (Watari-Um Museum supporters ¥400, normal members ¥640) *Please see website for details on attending.

This exhibition introduces the past, present, and future of city development in Sengawa (Chofu City, Tokyo), along with the ongoing design of road layout. The project consists of 6 facilities that designed alongside the road, and is one of the largest projects that the world has seen.