Art-tastic Adventure
The National Art Center, Tokyo
Workshop Reports
March, 2017 - December, 2021

On the occasion of the publication

Acknowledgements

The National Art Center, Tokyo, has implemented various educational outreach programs

Artists’ workshops at The National Art Center, Tokyo are made possible by the support

under the theme of “a museum in which people participate, interact, and create.” Our

and cooperation of the workshop leaders, by NIHON SEKKEI, INC. and Canon Inc., and byefforts include lectures and different kinds of symposiums related to exhibitions, talkmany others. All of us at the NACT would like to express our most heartfelt gratitude. We

programs where artists themselves explain about their works, art appreciation guides

are also deeply grateful to many other individuals whose names could not be listed here.

for children, architectural tours that allow visitors to watch the museum itself, as well

(In no particular order, honorifics omitted)

as providing learning opportunities for young, prospect art professionals by acceptinginterns and volunteers.
At the core of the educational activities that the museum has been focusing its efforts

Instructors

on since its opening is the “Artist Workshop,” where visitors can think about art from a

Manika Nagare

wide range of perspectives and have hands-on experience along with artists. “Art-tastic

Masayuki Inoue

Adventure, Workshop Reports,” published every five years, is the third edition this year,
which commemorates the 15th anniversary of the museum. This new edition contains
records of the workshops from the 67th to 94th, along with essays contributed by artists

Verbal Imaging Museum Tour with Visually Impaired People
Naoko Yoshimoto
Minoru Nomata

who held the workshops.
For the past five years, in addition to the traditional artist workshops that requireprior application, we have also been offering programs that allows visitors to participate
without reservation. In addition, we have conducted more diverse programs than everbefore, including ones given by the staff of the Section of Education & Public Programs
instead of artists, and an architecture workshop by volunteers from NIHON SEKKEI, INC.,

Miwa Akabane
Reiko Sudo
Hideo Ohsumi
Rintaro Hara + Yu Hara
Taro Sakata

which was derived from the architecture tour.
On the other hand, since 2020, when the world-wide Covid-19 pandemic forces us
to close the museum for an extended period of time, we have experimented on online
workshops and have been providing webinars and videos. Thanks to the nature of online
participation, people from all over the country were able to participate, extending our

Sachiko Kazama
Soichiro Mihara
Akira Higashi

reach further. Although the pandemic has limited our face-to-face activities, we will

Nobuharu Asano

continue to search for new ways to connect people with art.

Kotobuki Shiriagari

Last, but not least, we would like to thank the artists who willingly played a role ofa workshop lecturer and put on a wonderful program, the student interns and support
staff, the companies who provided the equipment and materials, and every participant.
We would like to express our sincere gratitude to all those who have contributed.

NIHON SEKKEI, INC. employees
Yuima Nakazato
PAN- PROJECTS (Yuriko Yagi, Kazumasa Takada)March 2022
The National Art Center, Tokyo

2

3

About The National Art Center, Tokyo

MissionThe National Art Center, Tokyo was founded in 2007 with the mission of contributing to the creation of a new culture that
advances mutual understanding and inclusion through the power of art. Since then, the NACT—the fifth institution to beestablished under the Independent Administrative Institution National Museum of Art—has functioned as an art center
without permanent collections that provides the public with a place where they can experience many different forms ofartistic expression, make new discoveries, and share diverse values. In addition to hosting a broad spectrum of art showsin one of Japan’s largest art exhibition spaces (14,000 m2), the NACT also collects, provides, and makes publicly accessible
diverse art information/resources and runs various educational and public programs.

Our Core Activities
1. Exhibitions—The NACT presents a large variety of art expressions and offers fresh perspectives on artistic creativity.
• Artist associations that run nationwide activities are provided with a place to hold exhibitions.
• New expressions in various fields are showcased to cultivate interest in contemporary art.
• Art from diverse eras and regions is presented through themes and insights that speak to today’s audiences.
• Research findings are shared in an easy-to-understand form through various types of exhibitions.

2. Information Collection and Dissemination—The NACT connects people and art through the gathering and sharing of information resources.
• Information about art exhibitions held in Japan is gathered and shared.
• Post-WWII Japanese art exhibition catalogs are comprehensively collected and made accessible to the public.
• Various materials related to modern and contemporary Japanese art are collected and made accessible to the public.

3. Education and Public Programs—The NACT serves as a site of participation, interaction, and creativity.
• Lectures, symposiums, and gallery talks related to exhibitions are regularly organized.
• Through artists’ talks and workshops, diverse audiences are provided with opportunities to learn about and discuss different
works of art.
• Internship and volunteer programs provide opportunities for hands-on activities at the NACT.
• Information and materials are collected on educational extension projects at art museums.

Hours
10:00-18:00 / Fri. & Sat. 10:00-20:00
Closed on Tuesdays and during the New Year’s Holiday

Admission
Admission fees are determined for each exhibition.

Contact
The National Art Center, Tokyo(Kokuritsu Shin-Bijutsukan)
7-22-2 Roppongi, Minato-ku, Tokyo
106-8858 Japan
Tel: +81 (0)3-6812-9900
Web: https://www.nact.jp

4

About The National Art Center, Tokyo

5

Contents
On the occasion of the publication

2

Workshops 2020

Acknowledgements3

87 Where Does a Body Begin and End? What is a Body? Dramatic Transformations with Paper!

58

About the National Art Center, Tokyo

5

88 Your Own Avatar?! Make a “Maneckster,” a Bizarre Three-Legged Creature!

60

Workshop List

8

89 Kotobuki Shiriagari Online Workshop: Fun with Hokusai!

62

90	Secrets of the National Art Center, Tokyo—How Are People and Artworks Protected from Earthquakes?

64

Workshops 2017

67 Find the Color of Japan, 2017

18

68 What Shape is a Nose?—Let’s Become Giacometti

20

69 Verbal Imaging Museum Tour with Visually Impaired People

22

70 SUNSHOWER Student Workshop

24

71 Ghost—Days Gone By

26

Workshops 2021

91 My Koinobori Now! 2021 Online

66

92 Yuima Nakazato Fashion Program Thinking About Fashion and the Future with Teens68

93 Online Session with PAN- PROJECTS: On Human Activity and Objects

70

94 Verbal Imaging Museum Tour with Visually Impaired People

72

Workshops 2018

72 SKYSCAPES—Imagination time around the sky—28

73 Drawing Session for Everyone! : Let’s Chat in ○△□!30
74 Koinobori Now! Workshop

32

75 Balance is Fun! Midsummer Free Study: Playing with the Wind

34

76 Come-As-You-Art Craft Workshop—Let’s Make an Original Pin-On Badge!—

36

77 Shadow Merry-Go-Round38

Workshops 2019

78 Creation with Lacquer, Living with Lacquer40

79 Let’s Make “Ambiguous Class Business Cards”!

42

80 Found How to Enjoy a Museum: Look! Explorers

44

81 Art Appreciation Workshop: Seeing, Reading, and Looking at the Leiko Ikemura Exhibition

46

82 My Koinobori Now! 2019

48

83 Come-As-You-Art Craft Workshop 2019—Let’s Make an Original Pin-On Badge!—

50

84 Listening Closely to an Art Center in Roppongi—Imagining Sounds, Creating with Ears

52

85 Who’s on the Other Side of the Curtain?—Let’s Make a World of Ghosts

54

86 Verbal Imaging Museum Tour with Visually Impaired People

56

Essay
Going Back and Forth Between “Straight” and “Hanging Out” / Kenta Hayashi

76

Reflections on the Workshop / Reiko Sudo

77

Sense of Wonder, and the Wonder of Being Enthralled / Hideo Ohsumi

78

Shadow Merry-Go-Round / Rintaro Hara

79

Making “Ambiguous Class Business Cards” Together / Sachiko Kazama

80

Listening Closely to an Art Center in Roppongi—Imagining Sounds, Creating with Ears / Soichiro Mihara

81

Workshop List

The Workshops from 1 to 29 and 30 to 66 were documented in the books Art-tastic Adventure: Workshop Reports,

March 2007 - February 2011 , and Art-tastic Adventure: Workshop Reports, April 2011- January 2017 .
Title of Workshops / Related Program

Instructor / Job Title

Date

TargetParticipants

Place

1

Make Your Own Symbol Mark!

Kashiwa Sato

“Tell me, Kashiwa-san!” [lecture and workshop]

Creative director

3/24/2007

Elementary school students

18 people

Annex, 3F multipurpose room

2

Play Your Body!

Tatsuya Kusuhara

Program held in conjunction with Skin + Bones: Parallel Practices in Fashion and Architecture Bones edition event

Choreographer / Dancer

7/29/2007

Elementary school students (3-6 grade)

11 people

3

Making a 3D Cloth (Skin)

Yoshiki Hishinuma

Program held in conjunction with Skin + Bones: Parallel Practices in Fashion and Architecture Skin edition event

Fashion designer / Textiles designer

8/4/2007

Anyone22 people

4

Workshop for University Students: Talking about Art– Things You Feel, Things You Want to Ask

Shigeo Anzai

9/23,30/2007

University students

5

Make a Symbol Mark for Your School! Make Your Own Symbol Mark!

Makoto Matsunaga, Shobun Nakashima,
Katsumi Asaba, Kazufumi Nagai

10/20,21/2007

High school students
Elementary school students (3-6 grade)”Design Workshop for High School Students”

Art documentarian

Art director

6

My House, My Clothes: Let’s Make a Wearable House

Yoshikazu Yamagata, mafuyu

12/1/2007

7

I Feel a Little Like a Great Painter Today: Painting with Hiroshi Okutani at NACT

Hiroshi Okutani

1/27/2008

8

Sniffing Walk: Searching for Smells in NACT

Hisako Inoue

2/16/2008

4 years old and over9

A Human-sized Project: Making a Balloon as Big as You

Takefumi Ichikawa

Program held in conjunction with Artist File 2008: The NACT Annual Show of Contemporary Art

Artist3/15,16/2008

Anyone10

Let’s Make an Imaginary Space!

Hiraki Sawa

Program held in conjunction with Artist File 2008: The NACT Annual Show of Contemporary Art

Artist11

A Futuristic Life Made by minä perhonen

Akira Minagawa

5/18/2008

12

Art Appreciation Workshop: Playing with Words at the Emily Exhibition

Kenji Shiratori

Program: “minä perhonen and Design” (lecture and workshop)

Program held in conjunction with Utopia: the Genius of Emily Kame Kngwarreye

Fashion designer, Knitting artist

Painter

ArtistDesigner

Elementary school students (4 grade) - Junior highschool students (3 grade)

9/23 18 people,
9/30 33 people
10/20 36 people,
10/21 38 people
23 people
12 people

Special Exhibition Gallery 2E and elsewhere
Annex, 3F multipurpose room
Annex, 3F multipurpose room
Annex, 3F multipurpose room
Annex, 3F multipurpose room
Special Exhibition Gallery 2E, Annex,
3F multipurpose room and elsewhere

29 people

Annex, 3F multipurpose room and elsewhere

3/15 19 people,

3F Auditorium, Lecture room A,B,C,

3/16 27 people

Bamboo Grove

11 people

Annex, 3F multipurpose room

Anyone20 people

Annex, 3F multipurpose room

7/6/2008

Anyone22 people

Special Exhibition Gallery 2E, 3F Auditorium

4/12/2008

Elementary school students (2 grade) - Junior highschool students (3 grade)

13

Discovering Things We Ought to Love! Fun Designs!

Hisakazu Shimizu

8/24/2008

Elementary school students and over, parents

8 pairs 21 people

Annex, 3F multipurpose room and elsewhere

14

What Is Design?? Let’s Try to Design a Chair!

Hiromichi Konno

9/28/2008

Elementary school students

29 people

Annex, 3F multipurpose room and elsewhere

15

Spelling Roppongi: Putting a Stroll in a “Letter”

Sayaka Akiyama

12/21/2008

Elementary school students and over

20 people

Annex, 3F multipurpose room and elsewhere

16

Make Your Own Mobile!

Shigeki Fujishiro

2/14/2009

Junior high school students and over

22 people

Annex, 3F multipurpose room

17

Miniature Insect World: Making a Bug’s-eye World

Minoru Ohira

Program held in conjunction with Artist File 2009: The NACT Annual Show of Contemporary Art

Artist3/8/2009

Elementary school students

17 people

18

Various Shapes Emerging from Stone

Shingo Murai

4/5/2009

Elementary school students (4 grade) and over

18 people

Annex, 3F multipurpose room and elsewhere

Let’s Do Art Exercises: Experiencing Great Works and Masterpieces

Touko Takahashi

8/22/2009

Elementary school students

13 people

Annex, 3F multipurpose room

Challenge!: Abstract Painting – Personal Impressions and Overflowing Colors

Yoko Matsumoto

9/12/2009

Anyone21 people

Annex, 3F multipurpose room

19
20

Program held in conjunction with Artist File 2009: The NACT Annual Show of Contemporary Art

Program held in conjunction with The Light: Yoko Matsumoto / Rika Noguchi

Product designer

Product designer

ArtistProduct designer

Sculptor

ArtistPainter

Annex, 3F multipurpose room,
Special Exhibition Gallery 2E

21Capturing the World Beyond the Lens: Taking Abstract Pictures with a Digital Camera

Ryo Hamada

12/19/2009

Elementary school students (4 grade) and over

18 people

Annex, 3F multipurpose room and elsewhere

22

Using Plarail to Play with ParamodelParamodel

1/10/2010

Anyone34 people

3F Auditorium and elsewhere

23

Making Your Own Character with a Doll Artist

Ryoko Ishii

2/27/2010

Anyone22 people

Annex, 3F multipurpose room and elsewhere

Making Animation with an Umbrella

Chisato Saito

3/20/2010

Junior high school students and over

15 people

Annex, 3F multipurpose room24
8Program held in conjunction with ANZAÏ: Personal Photo Archives 1970-2006

Annex, 3F multipurpose room, 3F Auditorium,

Program held in conjunction with Artist File 2010: The NACT Annual Show of Contemporary Art

ArtistArtistDoll artist

ArtistWorkshop List

9

Title of Workshops / Related Program

Instructor / Job Title

Date

TargetParticipants

Place

25

Small Things Made of Colored Wire

Elliot Mkhize, Nomvuselelo Mavundla

4/24/2010

Anyone24 people (total for two sessions)

B1F Lounge area

26

What Is Wood? Looking, Listening, Touching!

Shigeki Miyamoto

6/5/2010

Elementary school students

23 people

Annex, 3F multipurpose room and elsewhere

27

Appreciating Art with Your Body: The World of Man Ray

Chie Ito

8/29/2010

Elementary school students

16 people

Annex, 3F multipurpose room,
Special Exhibition Gallery 1E

Capturing the Whispering Wind and Fluctuating Light with a Camera

Miho Akioka

10/2/2010

Elementary school students (4 grade) and over

20 people

Annex, 3F multipurpose room and elsewhere

2/19/2011

Anyone24 people

Annex, 3F multipurpose room

28
29
30

Model maker

Choreographer / Dancer

ArtistCollect Your Own Lines!

Mio Kaneda

Examining Our Lives, Creating With Clay

Yuki Nakaigawa

5/7/2011

Elementary school students and over

18 people

Annex, 3F multipurpose room and elsewhere

Program held in conjunction with Artist File 2011: The NACT Annual Show of Contemporary Art

Painter

Ceramic artist

31

Texture Exploration Team! ~ Search for Shapes Around NACT ~Koichi Sakao

7/16/2011

Elementary school students and over

22 people

Annex, 3F multipurpose room and elsewhere32

A Sleeve Bag—Made with My Own Unique Pattern!

Hiroko Takahashi

9/4/2011

Junior high school students and over

20 people

Annex, 3F multipurpose room

33

What Is Design? ~ Let’s Make an Impression of the Exhibition Using Color and Shape! ~Kashiwa Sato

The 5th Anniversary of The National Art Center, Tokyo

Creative director

1/22/2012

Elementary school students (3-6 grade)

24 people

Annex, 3F multipurpose room and elsewhere

Stuff My "Favorites" in a Box ~ Art Made Out of Scrap ~34

ArtistArtistNatsumi Tomita, Hiroji Noda

Program held in conjunction with NODA Hiroji 1981-2011

Artist, Painter

2/18/2012

Junior high school students and over

22 people

Annex, 3F multipurpose room and elsewhere35

Outdoor Tea Ceremony ○△□~ Draw Hanging Scrolls and Appreciate Them in a Tea Ceremony Room ~Yoshiaki Kaihatsu, Hiroji Noda

3/24/2012

Junior high school students and over

18 people

Annex, 3F multipurpose room and elsewhere36

Hold Your Breath. Gently Touch Silver Foil and Learn About Japanese Painting Materials

Tomoyuki Kambe

5/27/2012

Elementary school students (5 grade) and over

21 people

Annex, 3F multipurpose room and elsewhere

37

Experiments in Body and Space - Feel the Space of NACT with Your Body!-

Teita Iwabuchi

7/29/2012

Elementary school students (3 grade) and over

17 people

1,2,3F Lobby, 3F Auditorium

Photographs as "Expression"- Two Commentary Sessions by Toshio Shibata -Toshio Shibata

8/25,9/8/2012

High school students and over

17 people

Lecture room A, B and elsewhere

My First Art Experience: Touch, Listen to, and Feel the Newspaper

Kotaro Fukui

11/3,4/2012

Preschool children (3-6 years old) and parents

11/3 11 pairs 25 people
11/4 12 pairs 27 people

Annex, 3F multipurpose room

40

"Time of Grieving," photographed by high school students

Lieko Shiga

Program held in conjunction with Artist File 2013: The NACT Annual Show of Contemporary Art

Artist2/24/2013

High school students

5 peopleAnnex, 3F multipurpose room and elsewhere

41

Making Nests to Illuminate the Trees: Creating an Installation for Art Night

38
39

10

Program held in conjunction with SHADOWS: Works from the National Museums of Art

Wire artist

Program held in conjunction with NODA Hiroji 1981-2011

Program held in conjunction with Given Forms—TATSUNO Toeko / SHIBATA Toshio

Artist, PainterJapanese-style painterDancer / Choreographer

Photographer

Japanese-style painterTakamasa Kuniyasu

Program held in conjunction with Artist File 2013: The NACT Annual Show of Contemporary Art

Artist3/23/2013

High school students and over

19 people

Annex, 3F multipurpose room and elsewhereWorkshop with House of Cards

Tomohiro Okazaki, Norihiko Terayama

4/27/2013

Exhibition Design Ah! visitors

2,250 people

21_21 DESIGN SIGHT (Tokyo)

42

California Design and exhibition Design Ah! Joint Program

43

Before Photography / Create Darkness

Takashi Homma

7/28,8/4/2013

High school students and over

16 people

Annex, 3F multipurpose room

44

Turn Your Humor into an Illustration!

JUN OSON

8/25/2013

Elementary school students (3 grade) and over

16 people

Annex, 3F multipurpose room and elsewhere45

My First Art Experience: Create and Play "Make-Believe Play"

Yasue Omori

11/24/2013

Preschool children (2-6 years old) and parents

13 pairs 34 people

Annex, 3F multipurpose room46

Fold Your Own Face!

COCHAE [Yosuke Jikuhara, Miki Takeda]

Program held in conjunction with See, Hear, Play: The Power of Images Weekend

Design Unit

3/8/2014

Anyone133 people (total for three
sessions)

1F Lobby

47

Images of Me and Everyone — Face to Face with Things from the World —Kenji Yoshida, Reiko Saito, Yuriko Yamanaka,
Yoko Ueba,Mitsue Nagaya,YukakoYamada

3/15,16/2014

3/15 Junior high school students and over
3/16 Elementary school students (4-6 grade)

3/15 22 people
3/16 8 people

Lecture room A,B, Special Exhibition Gallery 2E

48

Drawing Birds That Are Not Birds: Thinking and Painting in Reverse

Kazumi Nakamura

5/10/2014

Elementary school students (5 grade) and over

27 people

Annex, 3F multipurpose room and elsewhere

Program held in conjunction with The Power of Images: The National Museum of Ethnology Collection

Program held in conjunction with Nakamura Kazumi exhibition

Art director / Graphic designer, Designer

Photographer

Illustrator

Director

Cultural anthropologist / Curator
PainterWorkshop List

11

49

Instructor / Job Title

Date

TargetParticipants

Place

Wearable Illustrations: A 2.5D Tunic Dress Collection

Yoko Takagi

7/26/2014

Persons aged 12 and over

15 people

Annex, 3F multipurpose room and elsewhere

10/26/2014

Elementary school students (3 grade) -High school
students

18 people

Annex, 3F multipurpose room

Program held in conjunction with Ballets Russes: The Art of Costume

Bunka Gakuen University

50

Produce and Star In Your Own Picture Book

Chihiro Nakagawa

51

My First Art Experience: Drawing and Sculpting With a Professional Painter!

Yuumi Domoto

11/22,23/2014

11/22 Preschool children (3-6 years old) and parents
11/23 Elementary school students (1-4 grade)andparents

137 people (total for two days)

Annex, 3F multipurpose room

52

Painting and Sculpture Workshop: Four Colors, Nine Cups

Motohiro Tomii, Keisuke Kondo

1/25/2015

Junior high school students and over

20 people

Annex, 3F multipurpose room

Shapes and Colors in Motion! Let’s Find Out How Animation Works

Tokyo Polytechnic University, Faculty of Arts,
Department of Animation

4/25/2015

Anyone160 people in total

1F Lobby

Life Type: Get to Know Yourself and Others Through Design

SPREAD [Hirokazu Kobayashi, Haruna Yamada]6/14/2015

Junior high school students and over

18 people

Annex, 3F multipurpose room

Experience of “Seeing” Time in Manga: Sound to be Released, Motion to be Dissected

Masao Suzuki, Kensuke Noda

8/22/2015

High school students and over

25 people

Lecture room A,B

Devices of Movement Made with Cooling Fans

Kanta Horio

9/27/2015

Elementary school students (3 grade) -High school
students

8 peopleAnnex, 3F multipurpose room, 3F Auditorium

Made in Mind

Yang Junguk

10/11/2015

Junior high school students and over

20 people

3F Auditorium, Special Exhibition Gallery 2E

11/15/2015

Preschool children (3-6 years old) and parents

90 people (38 groups) in total

1F Lobby

1/31/2016

Junior high school students and over

14 people

Annex, 3F multipurpose room

53
54
55
56
57

Program held in conjunction with Manga

Program held in conjunction with Manga

Anime

Anime

Games from Japan and Niki De Saint-Phalle

Games from Japan

Program held in conjunction with Artist File 2015: Next Doors - Contemporary Art in Japan and Korea

Picture book writer / Translator

Painter

Artist, PainterCreative Unit

Waseda University (Professor), Manga researcher

Artist engineer

Artist58

My First Art Experience: Floating, Bouncing, Painting!

Yoshiaki Kaihatsu

59

Steel, Shape, and Sound: Connecting Hands, Eyes, and Ears

Kenichi Kanazawa

60

Making a Zoetrope

Keigo Takenaka,Yuki Nomoto,
Sayaka Kihata, Natsumi Yoshizawa

2/14,15/2016

Anyone81 people

National Museum (Yangon, Myanmar)

61

Making Art with Newspaper and Packing Tape

Kotaro Sekiguchi

4/17/2016

Elementary school students and over

52 people

1F Lobby and Special Exhibition Gallery 2E

Program held in conjunction with Manga

Anime

Games from Japan in Myanmar

Program held in conjunction with MIYAKE ISSEY EXHIBITION: The Work of Miyake Issey

ArtistSculptor

Animator, Educator
Sculptural artist

62

Visualizing Events Containing Tipping Points

Erica Masuya

5/29/2016

Junior high school students and over

12 people

Annex, 3F multipurpose room

63

Say It With Triangles!

NACT Staff

8/11/2016

Anyone51 people

B1F Lounge and elsewhere

NACT Staff

8/27,28/2016

Anyone89 people in total

The National Gallery, Bangkok (Thailand)

Making a Zoetrope (in Bangkok)

65

Expanding Me, Connecting You — Welcome to the World of PARA-FUKU —Program held in conjunction with Manga

ArtistEducator, The Section of Education & Public Programs

64

Anime

Games from Japan in Bangkok

Educator, The Section of Education & Public Programs

Akira Higashi

Program held during Roppongi Art Night 2016

Artist10/22/2016

Anyone180 people

1F Lobby

Next 10 Years —My future designed with color and form—

SPREAD [Hirokazu Kobayashi, Haruna Yamada]

1/29/2017

Junior high school students and over

19 people

Annex, 3F multipurpose room,
Special Exhibition Gallery 2E

66

The 10th Anniversary of The National Art Center, Tokyo : Special Program

67

Find the Color of Japan, 2017

Manika Nagare

3/4/2017

Junior high school students and over

16 people

Annex, 3F multipurpose room

68

What Shape is a Nose?—Let’s Become Giacometti

Masayuki Inoue

8/11/2017Children of 4th grade and over and their parents

9 groups 18 people

Annex, 3F multipurpose room,
Special Exhibition Gallery 1E

69

Verbal Imaging Museum Tour with Visually Impaired People

Verbal Imaging Museum Tour with Visually Impaired People

9/9/2017

Anyone26 people (13 for 1st session, 13
for 2nd session)Special Exhibition Gallery 2E,
3F Lecture Room A, B

70

SUNSHOWER Student Workshop
Program held in conjunction with SUNSHOWER: Contemporary Art from Southeast Asia, 1980s to Now

Facilitator: Natsumi Yoshizawa, The National Art Center, Tokyo
Interpreter: Akinori Kumamoto

9/18/2017

Undergraduate and graduate students from Southeast Asia studying
in Japan, or undergraduate and graduate students from Japan

14 people

Special Exhibition Gallery 2E and Annex,
3F multipurpose room

71

Ghost—Days Gone By

Naoko Yoshimoto

9/30/2017

Elementary school student 4th grade and over

9 peopleAnnex, 3F multipurpose room and 1F lobby

Minoru Nomata

3/18/2018

Junior high school students and over

23 people

Annex, 3F multipurpose room

72
12

Title of Workshops / Related Program

Program held in conjunction with Alberto Giacometti: Collection Fondation Marguerite et Aimé Maeght

Program held in conjunction with SUNSHOWER: Contemporary Art from Southeast Asia 1980s to Now

Program held in conjunction with Roppongi Art Night 2017

SKYSCAPES—Imagination time around the sky—Creative unit

ArtistCeramic artist

ArtistArtistWorkshop List

13

73
74

Instructor / Job Title

Date

TargetParticipants

Place

Drawing Session for Everyone! : Let’s Chat in ○△□ !

Miwa Akabane

3/24/2018

Anyone74 people (total of 3 sessions)

1F lobby

Koinobori Now! Workshop

Reiko Sudo

4/29/2018

Elementary and junior high school students and theirparents

44 groups 119 people (15 groups
42 people in the first session, 29
groups of 77 people in the second
session)

1st session 3F lecture rooms A and B,
2nd session 3F auditorium

Program held in conjunction with Koinobori Now! Installation by Reiko Sudo, Adrien Gardère and Seiichi Saito

Graphic designer, Textile designer

Textile designer

75

Balance is Fun! Midsummer Free Study: Playing with the Wind

Hideo Ohsumi

8/11/2018

Elementary school students 4th grade and over andtheir parents

9 pairs 18 people

Annex, 3F multipurpose room76

Come-As-You-Art Craft Workshop—Let’s Make an Original Pin-On Badge!—

NACT Staff
Educator, The Section of Education & Public Programs

8/19/2018

Anyone108 people

1F lobby77

Shadow Merry-Go-Round

Rintaro Hara + Yu Hara

12/1/2018

Preschool children (3-6 years old) and their parents/
guardians

23 groups 63 people (1st session:
10 groups 27 people, 2nd session:
13 groups 36 people)

3F Auditorium, Gallery 1B

78

Creation with Lacquer, Living with Lacquer

Taro Sakata

1/14/2019

Junior high school students and over

14 people

Annex, 3F multipurpose room79

Let’s Make “Ambiguous Class Business Cards”!

Sachiko Kazama

2/17/2019

Elementary school students (5th grade) and over

18 people

Annex, 3F multipurpose room

80

Found How to Enjoy a Museum: Look! Explorers

Facilitator: NACT Staff
Educator, The Section of Education & Public Programs

3/3/2019

Elementary school students 3rd to 6th grade

9 people

3F lecture rooms A and B, and various locationsin the museum

Facilitator: NACT Staff
Educator, The Section of Education & Public Programs

3/16/2019

Anyone4 people

Special Exhibition Gallery 1E

81

14

Title of Workshops / Related Program

Art Appreciation Workshop: Seeing, Reading, and Looking at the Leiko Ikemura Exhibition
Program held in conjunction with Leiko Ikemura Our Planet – Earth & Stars

Sculptor

Artists

Lacquer artist

Artists82

My Koinobori Now! 2019

NACT Staff
Educator, The Section of Education & Public Programs

4/21/2019

Anyone222 people

1F lobby

83

Come-As-You-Art Craft Workshop 2019—Let’s Make an Original Pin-On Badge!—

NACT Staff
Educator, The Section of Education & Public Programs

7/21/2019

Anyone122 people

1F lobby

84

Listening Closely to an Art Center in Roppongi—Imagining Sounds, Creating with Ears

Soichiro Mihara

8/12/2019

Elementary school students (3rd grade) and over

21 people

Annex, 3F multipurpose room, various locations
on the NACT premises (including outdoors)

85

Who’s on the Other Side of the Curtain?—Let’s Make a World of Ghosts

Facilitator: NACT Staff
Educator, The Section of Education & Public Programs

8/18/2019

Elementary and junior high school students and theirparents/guardians

26 people

3F Auditorium, Special Exhibition Gallery 2E

86

Verbal Imaging Museum Tour with Visually Impaired People

Verbal Imaging Museum Tour with Visually Impaired People

10/6/2019

Anyone24 people (1st session: 11 people,
2nd session: 13 people)

Special Exhibition Gallery 1E

Elementary school students and over and theirfamilies

14 people

Annex, 3F multipurpose room

17 people

Annex, 3F multipurpose room and elsewhere

8 people (participating),
74 people (viewing live stream)

Online(Streaming from: 3F Lecture Rooms A, B)

Program held in conjunction with Christian Boltanski: Lifetime

Program held in conjunction with Image Narratives: Literature in Japanese Contemporary Art

Artist87

Where Does a Body Begin and End? What is a Body? Dramatic Transfor-mations with Paper!

Akira Higashi

1/26/202088

Your Own Avatar?! Make a “Maneckster,” a Bizarre Three-Legged Creature!

Nobuharu Asano

2/23/202089

Kotobuki Shiriagari Online Workshop: Fun with Hokusai!

Kotobuki Shiriagari

Program held in conjunction with Timeless Conversations 2020: Voices from Japanese Art of the Past and Present

Manga artist

8/15/202090

Secrets of the National Art Center, Tokyo—How Are People and Artworks Protectedfrom Earthquakes?

NIHON SEKKEI INC. employees

9/22/2020

Elementary school students (3rd grade) and over

55 people (1st session: 27 people,
2nd session: 28 people)

Gallery 3B and elsewhere91

My Koinobori Now! 2021 Online

NACT Staff
Educator, The Section of Education & Public Programs

4/29/2021

Anyone, all ages

20 groups 40 people (1st session:
8 groups 14 people, 2nd session:
12 groups 26 people)

Online(Streaming from: 4F, Conference Room 1, 2)

92

Yuima Nakazato Fashion Program Thinking About Fashion and the Future with Teens

Yuima Nakazato

Program held in conjunction with Fashion in Japan 1945-2020

Fashion designer

8/22/2021

Junior high and high school students (participating),
Anyone (viewing live stream)

5 people (participating),
55 people (viewing live stream)

Online(Streaming from: 4F, Conference Room 1)

93

Online Session with PAN- PROJECTS: On Human Activity and Objects

PAN- PROJECTS Yuriko Yagi, Kazumasa Takada

11/5, 12/2021

High school students and over

10 people

Online(Streaming from: 4F, Conference Room 1)

94

Verbal Imaging Museum Tour with Visually Impaired People

Verbal Imaging Museum Tour with Visually Impaired People

12/14/2021

Anyone31 people (1st session: 15 people,
2nd session: 16 people)

Special Exhibition Gallery 1E,
1F lobby

Program held in conjunction with PAN- PROJECTS: The Matter of Facts

Program held in conjunction with Hideaki Anno Exhibition

ArtistSculptor

Architectural design studio

Junior high school students and over, able to post
images taken with a smartphone or tablet on theirown Twitter accountFrom elementary school (4th grade) through juniorhigh school (3rd grade) students (participating),
Anyone (viewing live stream)*Sign language interpretation available

Workshop List

15

—

2017
2021

LegendThe explanation of each workshop was written by the following
persons. We wrote in initials at the end of the “Summary.”
Shoko Imai (SI)Yūki Ura (YU)
Ikuho Oiwa (IO)
Masaya Sawada (MS)Rika Takahashi (RT)
Takako Masumi (TM)Yui Morisaki (YM)
Mana Yamagiwa (MY)Natsumi Yoshizawa (NY)Nayuko Watabe (NW)67

Workshops 2017

1

ARTIST WORKSHOP

30 min.

2
15 min.

●④

Find the Color of Japan, 2017
•
•
•
•
•

Date and time: March 4 (Sat.), 2017 13:00 - 16:30
Participants: 16
Target: Junior high school students and over
Entry fee: 1,000 yen
Place: Annex, 3F multipurpose room
Cooperation: Nakagawa Chemical Inc.

•

Outline A workshop was held with artist Manika Nagare being an
instructor. The aim was for participants to think about the “Colorof Japan in 2017” and create their own “Color of Japan” usingtransparent sheets.

3
30 min.

4
70 min.

●
①

●
②

5
45 min.

●③

18

Instructor Profile

Program content and timing
LectureThe instructor, Manika Nagare, creates paintings with delicate
and profound colors by layering various colors on canvas,
with the theme of people she passes in everyday life andnature in Japan. When she introduced her past activities withslides, she talked about the traditional Japanese colors and“Kasane no Irome” (combination of colors created by layeringof kimono), which she used for the color scheme of the Azabu
Library in Minato Ward, and then she explained how the ideaof thinking about the “Color of Japan in 2017” came about as
the theme of this workshop. This time, participants are goingto think about the current colors of Japan, such as the colors
of Japan that they would like to introduce to foreigners, thecolors of Japan that express their moods of the time, and thecolors of Japan that they would like to see in the future.

Warming up
Before thinking about colors, there was time to think about
how they perceived Japan. They put down themes and key
words that led to the “Color of Japan” for them, following
the worksheet. At first, the participants seemed at a loss as towhat to write, but when Nagare gave clues, such as seasonal
events, the sky after rain, and the sounds of insects, ideas
seemed to come to them, and they started to move their
pencils.

ArtistManika Nagare
Born in Osaka and raised in Kagawa Prefecture. After graduatingfrom the Faculty of Painting in Joshibi University of Art and Design,
she received grants from the Program of Overseas Study for
Upcoming Artists of the Agency for Cultural Affairs (2002) and thePola Art Foundation (2004). She creates colorful oil paintings by
putting multiple layers of paint, on the theme of Japanese natureand her interests in other people who she passes by in everyday
life. She has participated in The Vision of Contemporary Art- VOCA
(The Ueno Royal Museum, 2000, 2006), Takamatsu Contemporary
Art Annual vol.05 Visible / Invisible Sceneries (Takamatsu Art
Museum, 2016), Re construction (Nerima Art Museum, 2020),
and others. In recent years, she has been working extensively to
explore the possibilities of painting, such as supervising the colorsof architectural spaces, producing public art, and collaborating withapparel brands and dancers. She is the founder of the non-profit
organization “Artist for a Day (Ichijigahaku)” that delivers art tochildren in disaster areas.

Summary

Creation of “Color of Japan”
The participants then chose three colors out of the preparedtransparent sheets of fourteen colors, and created “Color ofJapan” by layering them together. While putting the sheets
together, they kept in mind the theme and keywords theychose. They were shown color samples that Nagare created
when she supervised color selection for the Azabu Library,in Minato Ward, and tried altering the order of sheets andthe color combinations. While enjoying change in color due
to different layering, they searched for colors that are truly
satisfying through repeated trial and error. ①②

Upon production, the “Color of Japan” cubes were lined up on thedesk. Each of them reflected the theme each participant came up
with, such as their favorite scenery, the issues they were facing,the city of Tokyo, etc., and none of them had the same color. The
workshop projected various aspects of Japan through the different“Color of Japan” the participants created as they dealt with colors
patiently, thinking about Japan in 2017, and about themselvesliving there. After the workshop, the “Color of Japan” created by theparticipants were exhibited and made public in the 1F lobby of themuseum. ⑤ (YM)

Feedback from participants

Cube production
Once the three colors to be used for the “Color of Japan”
were decided, the participants moved on to a rather tricky
task of attaching the three colored sheets to the transparent
acrylic cube. First, they wet each surface with a sprayer andcarefully pasted the sheets one by one so that dust and air
bubbles would not enter. The colors seen through the cube
have different expressions from the ones seen when the
sheets are stacked, depending on the surface to which it ispasted and the angle at which it is viewed. ③

Presentation
At the end of the session, the participants presented theirown “Color of Japan” created by putting three sheets ofcolors and the acrylic cube, and then gave a presentation
about their theme, keyword, and the reason why theychose the color. Even if the theme is overlapped by otherparticipants, their viewpoints were different, and theircompleted colors were completely different. Various “Colorof Japan” were born to represent 2017, expressing thescenery they saw, the seasons they felt, their life, and theissues they were facing. ④• Making a cube by using three color sheets was very interesting.
•••

I was amazed at how different the color combinations can look.
(Man, 30s)
By reconsidering colors that surround us every day, I was able todeepen my insights not only on color combinations, but also on abroader theme of Japan. (Woman, 20s)
It was refreshing to have the opportunity to concentrate andthink about Japan and colors. Until now, I had a fixed sense ofwhat the “color of Japan” was, so it was fun to break free of it.
(Woman, 40s)
Choosing colors while thinking about the theme was very
difficult, but it was fun. Also, it was very interesting to hear otherpeople’s colors, themes, and thoughts. (Woman, 40s)

Materials
transparent color sheets (1 set of 14 colors), color samples, whitedrawing paper, worksheets, record sheets, pencils, erasers, white
gloves, acrylic cubes, cutters, cutter mats, rulers, squeegees, sprayers,
towels●⑤

Workshops 2017

19

68

Workshops 2017

1

ARTIST WORKSHOP

15 min.

2
25 min.

3●③

80 min.

What Shape is a Nose?—Let’s Become Giacometti
Program held in conjunction with Alberto Giacometti: Collection Fondation Marguerite et Aimé Maeght• Date and time: August 11 (Sun.), 2017 13:00 - 17:00• Participants: 9 groups 18 people• Target: Children of 4th grade and over and their parents• Entry fee: Free
• Place: Annex, 3F multipurpose room, Special Exhibition Gallery 1E

OutlineWe invited Masayuki Inoue as a lecturer, and held a workshop to
relive Giacometti’s perspectives on production while experiencing
production with one’s own nose as a motif.

4
15 min.

●
①

●
②

5
30 min.

6●④

20

Instructor Profile

Program content and timing
LectureMasayuki Inoue started the workshop by saying that the title,“Let’s Become Giacometti,” does not mean that he wants theparticipants to imitate Giacometti. His aim was to have themthink about his perspectives and engage in production, asGiacometti did.

Appreciate the Giacometti exhibition
Next, all the participants appreciated Alberto Giacometti:
Collection Fondation Marguerite et Aimé Maeght . The children
and their parents took a really close look at the exhibited
works, and imagined the work that they themselves weregoing to create. ①

Production with their own nose as a motif
Returning to the annex, they were going to create a workwith their own nose as the theme, using cardboard and glue
guns. Citing Giacometti’s work “Nose” as an example, Inoue
asked the participants questions such as, “what is a nose?”and “where does it start and end?” to lead them to realize
how vague their unconscious recognition of a nose was andto rethink about their nose. Compared to the children who
took a lot of time observing their noses with a hand mirror,
the adults worked on their project without really looking at
the mirror. Interesting to see how this difference will manifest
itself on the final products. ②

Ceramic artist

Masayuki Inoue
Born in Kobe in 1957. In 1985, he completed the master’s programat the Graduate School of Tama Art University. Since 2006, hehas been a professor at the Department of Ceramic, Glass andMetal Works of Tama Art University. Although Inoue majored in oil
painting at university, he encountered potter’s wheel production.
He discovered how shapes were born in his hands. He became
interested in the cracks and crushed fragments that occurred during
the molding process, and later on he started producing large-scale
three-dimensional ceramic works. Representative exhibitions include
Japanese Studio Crafts: Tradition and the Avant-Garde (Victoria
and Albert Museum, UK, 1995), The Art of Earth: Clay Works of the
New Century (National Museum of Art, Osaka, 2003), Craft Arts:
Innovation of “Tradition and Avant-Garde”, and the Present Day(National Museum of Modern Art, Tokyo Crafts Gallery, 2016), etc.,
and continues to present mainly at domestic and international
exhibitions.

Summary
The participants learned that Giacometti was “trying to express
what he saw exactly as he saw it,” and got to grasp how
Giacometti saw the world. We hope that the participants will retain
the thoughts they had through the four-hour workshop, and use theexperience the next time they appreciate art. (MS)

Watch their works together
Once their works have taken shape, everyone took timeand checked out one another’s progress. The noses made bychildren tended to be relatively small and life-sized, while
the ones by adults tended to be large and skillful. When theparticipants were asked how they chose the size, children
replied, “large nose makes me look bad. A small nose makes
me beautiful.” On the other hand, adults said, “I wanted tocreate an ideal nose, which is tall, straight and beautifully
shaped.”See what you create in a different way
Next, they thought about perceptions of things using theirown works. Although Giacometti created sculptures after
painting them first, in this workshop, the participants werechallenged to create paintings out of the works that they had
created. They placed carbon paper and A3 drawing paper overtheir work, and they copied the shape. Based on the traces,
they added a drawing with a pencil to try to make the patternrecognizable as the nose. ③④

Feedback from participants• At school, children tend to create similar things to others, but this•••time they were acting freely, which was good. It was a good idea
to separate parents and children. (Man, 40s)
It was fun to create my own nose using different things. Also, it
was good that I could watch various noses that others made. It
was interesting because everyone had different ideas. (Girl, 11)
I usually don’t pay much attention to the “nose”, but throughparticipating in today’s workshop, I reconsidered about what
the “nose” is and why it’s shaped like this. It was a lot of fun.
(Woman, 20s)
I’m glad that I had an opportunity to be better aware of my nose
for the first time. It was a good opportunity to understand by
being curious and noticing. (Boy, 10)

Materials
pencils, scissors, rulers, cardboards, kraft paper, strings, glue guns,
hand-mirrors, gloves, A3 drawing paper, carbon paper, kitchen paper,
etc.

Commentary
At the end, all the participants lined up their works andreceived a review. Inoue said, “It’s important to ask yourself
what you did. You may not recognize what you did right after
you made the work, but it’s important to look back at it after
a while,” and the workshop ended. ⑤●⑤

Workshops 2017

21

69

Workshops 2017

In this workshop, different people in terms of how they
see and think about things, with or without disabilities
made a team of around seven, and viewed as a team
the SUNSHOWER exhibition. After that, they exchanged
impressions and ideas that they had, by explaining “whatthey see” and “what they don’t see” about the exhibited
works and the exhibition space. With the cooperation ofpeople involved in the “Verbal Imaging Museum Tour with
Visually Impaired People,” we held the event twice.

1
20 min.

●②

Verbal Imaging Museum Tour with Visually
Program held in conjunction with SUNSHOWER:
Impaired People
Contemporary Art from Southeast Asia 1980s to Now• Date and time: September 9 (Sat.), 2017 13:00 - 15:00, 17:00 - 19:00 Outline• Participants: 26 (13 for 1st session, 13 for 2nd session)
As a related program to the SUNSHOWER exhibition, which introduces• Target: Anyone • Entry fee: Free (special exhibition tickets required)contemporary art from Southeast Asia, we held “Verbal Imaging• Place: Special Exhibition Gallery 2E, 3F Lecture Room A, B
Museum Tour with Visually Impaired People.”
Collaboration:
VerbalImagingMuseumTourwith
Visually
Impaired
People•2
75 min.

●③

3
15 min.

●④22

Verbal Imaging
Museum Tour with
Visually Impaired
PeopleIntroduction

ARTIST WORKSHOP●①

Instructor Profile

Program content and timing

Overview of the exhibition, selfintroduction of participants
The participants gathered in the lecture room were divided
into two groups and sat down until the workshop started,
while chatting with the navigator, who was visually impaired.
At the beginning of the workshop, they listened to an
overview of the SUNSHOWER exhibition, which introduces
contemporary art from Southeast Asia, followed by the
instruction given by Kenta Hayashi from the “Verbal Imaging
Museum Tour with Visually Impaired People.” He explainedthat they would talk in words about “things ‘they can see’such as shape, color, size” as well as things ‘they cannot see’such as impression, ideas, and interpretation. ①
After that, all the participants introduced themselves in eachgroup and headed to the exhibition room.

Appreciation of the SUNSHOWER exhibition
In the exhibition venue, diverse artistic expressions from themulti-ethnic, multi-lingual, and multi-religious Southeast
Asian countries were displayed. Both groups that enteredthe venue watched FX Harsono’s Voice Without a Voice/Sign , Ly Daravuth’s The Messenger , May Chandavong’s War
Devastation , Yasmin Jadin’s Collection of Personal Items ,Anggun Priambodo’s Toko Keperluan (Necessity Shop) , etc.
Although surprised and confused by the works created invarious social backgrounds, the participants expressed inwords what they saw and what they felt, and also listened towhat other participants had to say. ②③④⑤

Looking backAfter taking a careful look at the SUNSHOWER exhibition
and talking about the experience, they returned to the lectureroom, where in each group they told one another about theworks they were impressed by and shared their impressions.
The participants, who were completely open to each otherduring the time in the exhibition room, nodded at the wordsof others, and laughed at their unique impressions. They
appeared to want to talk more when the time was up.

Kenta Hayashi
Jin Jin Tei
Michinori Kinoshita
Yohei Seto
Yusuke Nakajima
The group, which began its activities in 2012, is composed of bothvisually impaired and visually unimpaired individuals. Around once amonth it holds art appreciation programs at museums and schools,
where people from various backgrounds to discuss “the act ofviewing,” regardless of whether they have a disability or not. Recent
significant activities include an appreciation program at the Tokyo
Photographic Art Museum, which has been ongoing since 2017, andthe Kikutabi Project: Yokohama Museum of Art Edition , producedwith theatrical actor Masahiro Oishi (Mamagoto, Nylon 100˚C)and others. Since 2020, the group has aimed to create forums foranyone to easily and safely discuss access to the arts and “the act ofviewing,” primarily through online viewing programs.

SummaryThis workshop, which was held as a related program to the
SUNSHOWER exhibition, was planned and implemented jointlywith the “Verbal Imaging Museum Tour with Visually Impaired
People” group. The participants formed groups of about sevenpeople, including a visually impaired “navigator,” and watched
the SUNSHOWER Exhibition together, and discussed freely theirimpressions. The ages, occupations, disabilities, lifestyles, ways ofseeing things, and ways of thinking varied from one participant toanother. Spending time interacting with others with differences, infront of the artworks, they learned how others feel differently fromthemselves and shared diverse perspectives on contemporary art.
(NY)

Feedback from participants• I was able to appreciate the depth of things that I would not•••

be able to on my own. Instead of trying to understand Voice
Without a Voice/Sign by reading the captions, it was nice to feelthe excitement I gained through the process of starting withimpressions, understanding, and imagination. (Woman, 20s)
I was able to gain a new insight through working on the same
object in a small group, yet experiencing different things. It
was an interesting experience that when you see it by yourself,
it looks like (A), but when someone else sees it as (B), I canimagine that it looks different from either A or B, that is (C). (Man,30s/visually impaired)I felt how difficult it was to have others share the understandingby expressing in words and impressions what I see and what
don’t see. I was made keenly aware of the depth of choice ofwords and expression. (Woman, 50s)
Because I don’t have many opportunities to appreciate exhibits
while talking to multiple people, I was able to participate witha fresh feeling. I felt that, by explaining “what I see” and “whatI can’t see” in words, I was able to discover things that I would
normally overlook. (Man, 19/physically handicapped)●⑤

Workshops 2017

23

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Workshops 2017

Introduction
SUNSHOWER is an exhibition that introduces contemporary
art from Southeast Asia, which is not yet well known in Japan.
We wanted to take this opportunity to hold a workshop sothat young people from Japan and Southeast Asia could
interact with one another through art, by appreciating theexhibition together.

ARTIST WORKSHOP

1
35 min.

●①

SUNSHOWER Student Workshop
Program held in conjunction with SUNSHOWER: Contemporary Art from Southeast Asia, 1980s to Now• Date and time: September 18 (Mon., national holiday), 2017 11:00 - 16:00 Outline A workshop was held where college students from Southeast• Participants: 14
Asia and Japan viewed the SUNSHOWER exhibition together and• Eligibility: Undergraduate and graduate students from Southeast Asia
talkedabout Southeast Asian contemporary art from their own
studying in Japan, or undergraduate and graduate students from Japan
perspectives.
Entry
fee:
Free
Venue:
Special
Exhibition
Gallery2E
andAnnex,
3F
multipurpose
room
•
•

2
60 min.

3
65 min.

4
●
②

●
③

60 min.

5
45 min.

●④24Instructor Profile

Program content and timing●⑤

Warming up and briefing on the outline of
the exhibition
The workshop was attended by four international students
from Indonesia, Malaysia, and Thailand and ten Japanese
students who applied for this opportunity, joined by interns
and support staff of the NACT, who were also students andinternational students.
After gathering, they were divided into four teams and started
with self-introduction, by picking up one item that interested
them out of things in the multi-purpose room, and giving
reasons for the choice. ①
After the self-introduction, the facilitator gave a brief
explanation about the SUNSHOWER exhibition.

Appreciation of SUNSHOWER exhibition ①
Participants moved from the annex building to the exhibition
gallery, and watch the exhibition for the first round.
While appreciating works with various expressions andmethods, they talked with other teammates. They not only
discussed the external features of the works, but also otherfactors including social conditions of the artists’ countries,
religious ceremonies, and interests of young people in eachcountry. They had lively discussions especially about works
from countries the international students were from. ②

Lunch, Review of Appreciation ①, Sharing
After spending about an hour in the exhibition gallery, they
returned to the annex building and, over lunch, discussed
the works that gave them strong impressions. They collected
additional information about works that caught theirattention, from the exhibition catalog and the Internet. ③

Appreciation of SUNSHOWER exhibition ②
After the lunch break, the participants had viewed theexhibition for the second time. After consulting witheach other within the team, they decided which works toappreciate, thoroughly examined the artistic expressions ofSoutheast Asia, and exchanged opinions.

The National Art Center, Tokyo

Natsumi Yoshizawa
Interpreter: Akinori Kumamoto

Summary
We considered the SUNSHOWER exhibition, which brings together
contemporary art works from Southeast Asia, as a unique
opportunity for young people to exchange ideas that they haveof each other’s countries, and decided to hold a workshop forinternational students and Japanese students. Through the fivehour program, the participating Japanese students must havelearned about the diverse societies, religious beliefs, and histories
of Southeast Asia that lie behind the works, while the international
students were given an opportunity to reconsider the arts andcultures of their home countries and the relationships between
countries. We would like to thank Akinori Kumamoto, the interpreter,
and the student staff for their efforts in facilitating communication
between the participants, which was essential for the successful
workshop. (NY)

Feedback from participants• The hospitality is really good and the discussion with other•••participants do help me to have an eye open on how a piece ofart can be viewed from or address in different form of ideas. (Man,
31 from Malaysia)
Because I had a chance to listen to Southeast Asian people ofthe same generation talk about things like the situation in theircountries while watching the work, I was able to appreciate theworks more than I was otherwise. It was interesting because we
don’t usually have the opportunity to discuss the works. (Woman,
22 from Japan)
The exhibition here shows various points of new from artist in
ASEAN. Some of the work tell the story I haven’t heard before
though it is my neighbor country. I like the discussion part verymuch. (Woman, 22 from Thailand)
There was also a chance to exchange opinions, and it was a very
intense time. (Man, 23 from Japan)

Materials
list of works, memo paper with maps, blank maps, maps withinformation on ASEAN countries, sticky notes, SUNSHOWER
exhibition catalog, writing utensils
Things participants brought: sweets from their hometowns

Reflecting on Appreciation ② and sharing
with everyone
The participants returned to the annex building and had thelast chance to exchange their opinions. A large blank map
was prepared in the center of the room, and they wrote
down their thoughts about the works, what they learned or
noticed about the country/region. Some participants not only
wrote in words and illustrations, but also pasted color sheets.
After that, everyone gathered around the map and presented
their impressions one by one, and the workshop with college
students came to an end. ④⑤⑥●⑥

Workshops 2017

25

71

Workshops 2017

1

ARTIST WORKSHOP

15 min.

2
15 min.

●②

Ghost—Days Gone By
Program held in conjunction with Roppongi Art Night 2017

• Date and time: September 30 (Sat.), 2017, 13:00 - 16:00• Participants: 9• Target: Elementary school student 4th grade and over
• Entry fee: Free
• Location: Annex, 3F multipurpose room and 1F lobby

Outline3
45 min.

A workshop was held in which participants shared their memories andstories related to their shirts while untangling old shirts into threads.

4
70 min.

●①

Instructor Profile

Program content and timing●③

5
20 min.

6

Introduction of the lecturer’s own activities
Naoko Yoshimoto, the instructor, says that she pays extra
attention to small stains, wrinkles, and scratches on old
clothes. That’s because they are reminiscent of memories
that remain in old clothes. Each shirt contains the time andmemory of the person who wore it. Her concept was that weregard the time when it was used as a shirt as its life and thetime when it was no longer used as its death, by spinningmemories from there, we can think about life and death. She
explained how it worked by showing her own works.

Appreciation of Ghost—Days Gone By
The participants appreciated Yoshimoto’s works Ghost—Days Gone By exhibited in the lobby for Roppongi Art Night .
Threads extending from a large number of remains of shirtswith only the outlines left (called “shirt skeletons”), join alarge thread circle placed on the floor. She explained that thecircle of the threads represents reincarnation and rebirth ofthem, quietly waiting for the time when the next role is given
after completing one role as a shirt. The big circle looked likesome great principle of the world.

Cut off the bodies and sleeves of the shirt
After appreciation of the exhibit, they returned to the multipurpose room and received an explanation of the production
process from Yoshimoto. They first cut out an old shirt theybrought with them, leaving only the wrists, collar, and seams.
(What was left after being cut out was considered the shirt
skeletons.) They then threaded the cut-out cloth into piecesof a certain width and made them into tapes. As the shirt wasdismantled, it was as if the time and memories contained in
the shirt were also being released. ①②

Sharing memories by twisting cloth into
threads
The participants applied diluted laundry starch to the tapeshaped cloth, and twisted the cloth with their fingers andhands to make them into threads. Then while they weretwisting them all together, each participant shared theirmemories related to the shirt. In the twisted thread, notonly their own memories and time, but also the memories ofothers were gently mixed into. ③④

Exhibition
The participants tied the end of the finished thread to theshirt skeletons and displayed it together with Yoshimoto’s
work in the lobby. Watching the long thread that they mademerge into the loop of thread in Yoshimoto’s work on thefloor gave us a sense that life was being sublimated into thecycle of reincarnation. ⑤

ArtistNaoko
YoshimotoBorn in Hyogo Prefecture in 1972. She stayed in the UK, sponsoredby the Overseas Study Program for Upcoming Artists of the Agency
for Cultural Affairs and the Pola Art Foundation. She creates works
that make us think about “life” and “death” by retrieving memories
left behind in old clothes. Her major exhibitions include Reflection
Space, a Garden echoing with Heartbeats (Aichi Prefectural Museumof Art, 2012), The 16th DOMANI: The Art of Tomorrow (The National
Art Center, Tokyo, 2013), The Echigo - Tsumari Art Triennial (Niigata,2015). She is currently based in Hyogo.

Summary
Ghost—Days Gone By is Yoshimoto’s representative work, and it
is a huge collection of old clothes that have finished their role asclothing and their memories have been dismantled. It speaks to us
in its quiet voice as representation of eternity and cycle of life anddeath. At the workshop, each participant brought their own old
shirt, and through reexperiencing the artist’s production, merged
it into her work. At the end, all the participants watched their old
clothes become a part of Ghost—Days Gone By , and they were able
to spend fruitful time reconsidering their memories. (TM)Feedback from participants• It was fun because I was able to do something I had never done
before. (Woman, 30s)
• It was a difficult workshop, but it was fun because it was••••

something rare. I hope there will be more workshops like this.
(Girl, 11)When I looked the work before explanation, all I could think wasthat it was amazing, but after listening to her explanation andcreating it myself, my thoughts on the work changed. (Woman,20s)
I was surprised that daily necessities with which I have a strong
attachment have such a strong presence. (Woman, 20s)
I was happy to hear directly from Ms. Yoshimoto. I felt the cycleof life and death in the act of cutting a shirt and making it into a
thread. (Woman, 20s)
It was fun to make Koyori (string) absent-mindedly. Also, whencolored shirts were mixed into the exhibition, it was morecolorful and beautiful than all white. (Woman, teens)

Materials
sewing scissors, rotary cutters for cloth, long rulers, cutter mats,laundry starch, wet wipes, paper cups, baby wire hangers
Things participants brought: used cotton or hemp shirts and stories
about the shirts

Review
At the end of the workshop, the participants shared theirimpressions with one another.

20 min.
●
④

26

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⑤

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Instructor Profile

Program content and timing

1

ARTIST WORKSHOP

20 min.

2
25 min.

LectureHaving his actual work in front of them, the lecturer first
introduced himself and gave an introduction on today’s
activities. “There won’t be anything difficult. I want you to
use the theme of the sky as an opportunity to bring back a lotof memories today, untying tight knots,” says Nomata. “Try to
notice what we have that is different from others. Let’s noticethings that we didn’t notice before. Stop holding yourself
down!” His light-hearted talk made the participants, including
the ones who looked a little nervous, laugh out loud.

Document appreciation and exchange
meeting
Next, the participants lined up on the table the materials
related to the sky brought by each, and they all viewed them
together. There were books, art books, photographs, music,
video works. The collected materials included quite a varietyof things, and they were all filled with memories and feelings.
Some people immediately talked about the materials theybrought together.

ArtistMinoru Nomata
Born in Tokyo in 1955. Graduated from the Department of Design,
Faculty of Fine Arts, Tokyo University of the Arts in 1979. Usingarchitectural structures that do not exist in reality as motifs, he hascreated a lot of works by a variety of means of expression, including
painting, sculpture, printmaking, and drawing. His major exhibitions
include Architecture on Canvas (Tokyo Opera City Art Gallery, 2004),
ALTERNATIVE SIGHTS - Landscapes by Minoru Nomata (The Museumof Modern Art, Gunma, 2010), and Imaginary Architecture from
Piranesi to Minoru Nomata (Machida City Museum of Graphic Arts,
2013). His major publications include Points of View (Tokyo Shoseki,2004), Alternative Sights (Seigensha, 2010), Elements (Seigensha,2012) and others.

Summary●⑤

SKYSCAPES—Imagination time aroundthe sky—• Date and time: March 18 (Sun.), 2018 11:00 - 16:30• Participants: 23• Target: Junior high school students and over
• Entry fee: Free
• Place: Annex, 3F multipurpose room3
45 min.

OutlineInviting Minoru Nomata, artist, as a lecturer, we held a workshop
where participants will encounter various sensibilities throughproduction with the theme of the “sky.”

●
②

4
5
60 min.

●③28After appreciating the materials and exchanging ideas, theproduction finally started! From now on, it is time for eachof them to face themselves. “There is no such thing as a
mistake. Use your hands without hesitation,” said Nomata toencourage them to start working. ①(Lunch break)120 min.

●①

Work concept

Production
After lunch, everyone returned to their seat and resumed
production. One was trying to embody the image of thesky in themselves, another trying to capture the image thatcomes to mind into drawing, another trying to pursue theunexpected, and yet another trying to explore what can beseen by touching all materials. The venue was filled with theenthusiasm of each of the participants, who actively workedon the things around them and tried to express their goals inthe best possible way. ②③

Work presentation
Finally, after a total of three hours of production, all thecompleted works were gathered in the lecture space so thatthe participants could present their works. They talked about
their themes, the things they focused on, as well as what
they came to see through the expression of the sky. Included
were “a hundred faces” of the sky, the sky in memories, thepersonified sky, and the sky expressed in three dimensions.
All of the participants
took a close look at thediverse appearances ofthe sky, with no one being
the same, and they kept
exchanging words while
appreciating one another’s●⑥
work. ④⑤⑥

The aim of this workshop is to recall what they have long forgotten,
and reconsider things that have become too natural for them bymeans of expressing the sky, which tends to be overlooked because
we take it for granted. When the task is to face oneself, one tends
to keep their thoughts inward, but it was impressive to see theparticipants actively exchanging words with those around them.
From the way they enthusiastically appreciated the works of others,
it was felt that they were enjoying encounters with ways of seeing
and feeling the world that they hadn’t had. Through the processof production and interaction with others, it was a very enrichingtime in which each of them found the opportunity for a “newperspective.” (NW)

Feedback from participants• At first, I had a strong feeling of uneasiness, but I was••

encouraged by the teacher’s words, “Do not hesitate, but try
it out!” I enjoyed production in different ways using different
materials. (Woman, teens)
The story about his work was interesting and intriguing. I got thecourage to change my perspective a little. (Woman)In my usual process of my work, I have only thought of the sky asa background, and I have always drawn it in a fixed way, leading
to monotonous results. I think that this workshop gave me manyhints for new ways of thinking. (Man, 40s)

Materials
pencils, colored pencils, color pens, oil pastels, paints, coloredpaper, washi paper, wrapping paper, colored cellophane, suzuranpolyethylene film tape, cotton, yarn, strings, wood, straws, paper
clays, stones, beads, drawing paper, adhesive, glue, tape, scissors,
cutters
Things participants brought: materials related to the sky●④

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ARTIST WORKSHOP

2●④

Drawing Session for Everyone! :Let’s Chat in ○△□ !
• Date and Time: March 24 (Sat.), 2018
11:00 - 12:00, 13:30 - 14:30, 15:30 - 16:30• Participants: 74 (total of 3 sessions)• Target: Anyone• Entry fee: Free • Location: 1F lobby

20 min.

Outline A workshop was held on the themes of stories brought
about by “dialogue” and “exchange of viewpoints” with others, andit was open to everyone from children to adults, regardless of theirexperience or disabilities.

3
40 min.

●①

Instructor Profile

Program content and timing●②

4
10 min.

Introduction
Miwa Akabane, the instructor, has been developing projects
to connect people and situations based on the theme ofstories and unexpected things that “dialogue” produces. Thistime, in the 1F lobby, in addition to “dialogue drawings,”
which Akabane has conducted at hospitals and nursing carefacilities, she had the participants chose a favorite place fromthe drawings and exchanged it with the person they had adialogue with, called “exchange of viewpoints.” No advanceregistration or qualification was required, and participants
were accepted on a first-come, first-served basis on the dayof the event, so that anyone can participate freely. Course A
consisted of two 30-minute sessions of “dialogue drawings”
in pairs, and Course B consisted of one 60-minute session ingroups. Both courses were conducted simultaneously, totaling
three sessions. ①

Dialogue Drawing (in pairs)
Participants were paired up based on their arrival time andseated at desks facing each other. Using color pens, crayons,stickers, stamps, etc., the participants took turns drawing○△□ figures on a sheet of 30 cm square drawing paper.
As they interacted with each other, various patterns andshapes spread out on the paper. Guided by Akabane and staff
members, the participants also tried drawing with conditions,such as “drawing in 10 seconds” or “drawing with eyes
closed”. Through this game-like activity, even pairs who had
never met before seemed to gradually grow closer to theirpartners. ②③

Dialogue drawing (group)
Once about eight participants gathered, they first engaged
in “dialogue drawing” in pairs as in the paired session
above. Then, the pairs got together to form a group, and all
the participants drew together on a large sheet of paper, 90
cm wide and 3 m long. The drawing style and the drawing
materials chosen varied from person to person, with somedrawing while uneasy in front of the large sheet of paper andothers drawing large figures from one end of the paper to theother. The participants enjoyed the unpredictable developmentof the even, fascinated by color combinations and shapes that
could only be created through group work. ④

Exchange of viewpoints
After completing the “dialogue drawing” in pairs or groups,
the participants found their favorite part of the drawing andcut it out in a circle to make a tin badge. Then, by exchanging
the badges with one another in their respective pairs orgroups, they enjoyed the difference in perspective. ⑤

Graphic designer,
Textile designer

Miwa Akabane
Born in 1977. After graduating from Musashino Art University,
Miwa Akabane was involved in numerous advertising projects,
which included working at the Advertising Department of Suntory
Holdings Ltd. and at an advertising agency SUN-AD Co., Ltd. She
has decided to pursue her fascination with the stories hidden
within textile patterns and went on to study abroad in Sweden
where she earned a Master’s Degree from KONSTFACK Universityof Arts, Crafts and Design (MFA Textile Design). With surface
patterns as her main field, she works as a graphic designer andtextile designer, and also conducts projects that invite people toengage in dialogue.

Summary
At the workshop, we saw parents with their little children
stamping together, a deaf-blind person leaving line drawings
while checking the drawn shapes and lines with fingers, and apair of people who met for the first time gradually getting closer
to each other overcoming the initial nervousness. The workshop
provided opportunities for people of different ages, experiences,disabilities, and other backgrounds to share a space and reflect
on their relationships with others and the differences in theirperspectives. After the workshop, the group drawing was printed
on cloth and displayed on the glass curtain wall in the 1F lobby so
as to share the stories that emerged from the workshop with nonparticipants and visitors. (RT)

Feedback from participants• It was interesting to closely observe the other participants’
•
•
•
•
•
•

movements and to feel the process of what they were trying to
draw. (Woman)I was paired with someone I first met that day, but it wasinteresting to come closer, though nervous at first, in order towork together. (Woman)
It was interesting to see expressions getting diversified in a very
natural way. (Man)There were stickers and stamps so that even one-year-olds could
do it, and it was fun. (Woman)I thought it was a new and interesting trial. It is wonderful tohave a chance to be aware of the differences in the way werelate to others and their perspectives. (Woman)I was moved when the pair took turns drawing in the picture. I
was able to reconfirm that it feels good to express myself. (Man)I usually feel uncomfortable with “drawing pictures,” but I took
the plunge and participated. It was easy to start with “◯, △, □”and I enjoyed it. (Woman).

Materials
simili paper, drawing paper, colored pens, crayons, masking tape,round stickers, stamps (circle, triangle, and rectangle), stamping
board, badge machine, badge parts, circle cutter

●
③

30

●
⑤

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Instructor Profile

Program content and timing
Introduction
Koinobori Now! Installation by Reiko Sudo, Adrien Gardère,and Seiichi Saito consists of more than 300 cloth carp
streamers swimming in the exhibition room. In conjunction
with the traditional Japanese event “Children’s Day,” weheld a workshop on making carp streamers. Originally, theworkshop was scheduled to be held twice a day in the lectureroom, but due to more applications than expected, the second
workshop was held in the auditorium that can accommodate
more people.

ARTIST WORKSHOP

1
15 min.

Introduction of lecturer’s activities andexplanation of production procedures
A lot of textiles were prepared for this workshop by “NUNO”
which is run by the lecturer, Sudo. Sudo introduced to theparticipants NUNO’s textile production and explained theprocedure for making today’s carp streamers. ①

Textile designer

Reiko Sudo
Photo by Masayuki Hayashi

Born in Ishioka City, Ibaraki Prefecture. She is the representativeof NUNO Co. and Honorary Professor, Tokyo Zokei University.
Since 2008, she has been serving as a textile design adviser for
Ryohin Keikaku, Tsuruoka Fabric Industry Cooperative in Yamagata
Prefecture, As Corporation, and others. She has been on theadvisory board for Ryohin Keikaku Co., Ltd. since 2016. She hasreceived Mainichi Design Award, Roscoe Award, JID (Japan Interior
Designers Association) Award, and others. She creates new textiles
using different techniques from traditional Japanese dyeing andweaving to cutting-edge modern technologies. Her works are in
the permanent collections of the Museum of Modern Art, New
York, Metropolitan Museum of Art, Museum of Fine Arts, Boston,
Los Angeles County Museum of Art, Victoria and Albert Museum,
National Museum of Modern Art, Tokyo, and others.

●⑤

Koinobori Now! Workshop
Program held in conjunction with Koinobori Now! Installation by Reiko Sudo, Adrien Gardère and Seiichi Saito
Outline We invited Reiko Sudo to be the lecturer for a workshop• Date and time: April 29 (Sun.), 2018, 13:00 - 14:15, 14:45 - 16:00• Participants: 44 groups 119 people (15 groups 42 people in the firstwhere participants would make table-top koinobori (carp streamers)
session, 29 groups of 77 people in the second session)by using pieces of cloth, which were left from the production of carp
• Target: Elementary and junior high school students and their parents
streamers for the Koinobori Now! exhibition.
Entry
fee:
Free
Location:
1stsession3F
lecture
rooms
A
and
B,
2nd
session3F
auditorium••

2
45 min.

3
10 min.

●①●②

Summary

Production of Koinobori (carp streamers)
First, the participants selected nine pieces of fabric from themany colorful fabrics lined up on the table, one for each partof the carp streamer. Following the directions, they cut the
selected fabrics with scissors, they attached them together
with glue or double-sided tape. Once the Koinobori wasformed, they glued it to a stick, inserted the stick into thewooden stand, and the work was done. The wooden standwas specially made for this workshop by wood craftsmen. The
wood varied in type, shape, and surface polish to make thecloth Koinobori look special. ②③④⑤

Appreciation of the Koinobori made by theparticipants
After the production, the finished carp streamers were laidout on the table for all participants to appreciate them. Since
the different parts of the carp, such as the body, the backfin, and the eyeballs, were made of different fabrics, no two
carp streamers were the same. As a result, there were unique
Koinobori with different charms made by different persons orfamilies.

More than one hundred people participated in the workshop by
Reiko Sudo to create miniature carp streamers. The materials usedwere more than one hundred types of fabrics of different colors,
patterns, and weaves, which were left over from the productionof Koinobori that constituted Koinobori Now! exhibition. The
participants choose their favorite fabrics and pasted them together
to make a carp with fins, scales, and eyeballs all made of fabric.
After the carps were finished, they were attached to a stick andfixed to a base made by a woodcraftsman to complete the tabletop carp streamer. The colorful carp swimming above the table
made the day lively as if Children’s Day had come early. Throughthe production of Koinobori, a traditional Japanese event, we wereable to convey the appeal of textiles to people of all ages. (NY)

Feedback from participants• I was able to work while feeling the texture of various fabrics.
••••

My daughter enjoyed the various fabrics and colors. (Girl, 6,
Woman, 40s, and Man, 40s)
Both children and adults were very, very happy to be able totouch a lot of “cloth” that we rarely have a chance to touch! It
was a memorable day with the important keyword “Koinobori”(carp streamer). (Girl, 7, Boy, 5, Man, 30s, and Woman, 30s)
I had a lot of fun making one. It was great to be able to makecrafts while learning about cloth. (Boy, 9 and Woman, 40s)
It was a workshop that everyone could enjoy, including my
4-year-old and 15-year-old children, and myself. I am glad thatthey were able to develop an interest in cloth. (Boy, 15, Girl, 4,and Woman, 40s)
It was fun to choose our favorite fabrics from the countless
choices, and the finished products were so unique and attractive.
(Girl, 8 and Woman, 30s)

Materials

●
③

32

●
④

pieces from NUNO textiles (cut into squares, rectangles, andtriangles), paper patterns, linings (cardboard), glue, double-sided
tapes, scissors, needles, threads, wooden stands, round sticks,
production instructions

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1

ARTIST WORKSHOP

15 min.

2
15 min.

Balance is Fun!
Midsummer Free Study: Playing with the Wind
• Date and Time: August 11 (Sat.), 2018 11:00 - 16:30• Participants: 9 pairs 18 people• Target: Elementary school students 4th grade and over and their parents• Entry fee: Free
• Place: Annex, 3F multipurpose room

Outline We invited Hideo Ohsumi as an instructor and helped participants
to make mobiles that move with the slightest breeze. Children and theirparents competed with each other to see who could balance the mobile
better, and had the opportunity to appreciate the finished products.

3

Appreciation of artworks
The participants viewed Ohsumi’s works displayed in theoutdoor space of the National Art Center, Tokyo. While taking
a close look at his works, which showed them the movementof the wind as they rotated in response to the pleasantbreeze, Ohsumi explained to them how they work and how
he devised them to catch the wind well. Their anticipation for
the workshop was building up. ①

Warming up
They practiced balancing with stones. Piling stones on top ofeach other is easy, but it takes practice to shift the center ofgravity or to support large stones with small stones. ②

20 min.

4

Sculptor

Hideo Ohsumi
Born in Sendai in 1955, he completed his graduate studies at Tokyo
University of the Arts in 1982. His graduation work was purchasedby the university. When he was in junior high school, the Hakone
Open-Air Museum was completed right in front of his school. This
experience seems to have imprinted on him a desire to go into thefield of outdoor sculpture, while it was a slight deviation from his
studying design. While still in graduate school, he was selected forthe 2nd Henry Moore Grand Prize Exhibition and exhibited his workat the Hakone Open-Air Museum. Since then, he has been creating
works that move with the wind, with the idea of “wait a little bit.”
Representative exhibitions include the 6th Kurashiki Machikado
Sculpture Exhibition in 2003, the 24th UBE Biennale (Ube City OpenAir Sculpture Museum) in 2011, the 2017 Kaohsiung International
Steel & Iron Art Festival (Kaohsiung, Taiwan), and 2021 ART TAIPEI .

When faced with Ohsumi’s works, participants said, “His works are
more impressive than I imagined!” and “His works are totally different
from ours!” It was certainly because they created their own mobiles
through a trial-and-error process that they were able to appreciate
Ohsumi’s works based on their own experiences. This workshop wasplanned with the hope of creating a time for parents and children tohave a hands-on experience together during their summer vacation. It
did give them an opportunity where they, instead of working together
to create a single work of art, immersed themselves in the creation
process while regarding each other as good rivals. (MS)

Production
The mobiles the participants were going to create in thisworkshop were to be placed on the floor for viewing.
Therefore, the weight of the stone that would serve as thebase was important. Once they found a stone they liked, theycreated the movable part of the mobile while visualizing thefinished product. The titanium plate cut in a circle and thestone were attached to each end of the part that swings like abalancing toy, so that the weights were suspended from eachother. In addition, the titanium plate was dipped in chemicals
and an electric current was passed through it while adjusting
the height of the voltage (anode oxidation treatment) toapply vivid colors to the surface of the titanium plate. ③④

Feedback from participants• It was fun to find a place where I could pile up stones and to

•
•

●
②

5
45 min.

34

First, Ohsumi told us what he considers important in the
production of his works. He creates his works in search of
a way to form beauty out of the wind, taking cues from theway of living and the way of thinking rooted in the Japaneseclimate, such as “ma” for waiting, “ma” for space, “ma” forintervals, “ma” for time, “ma” among people.

Summary

130 min.

●③

Lecture(Lunch break)

●
⑤

●
①

Instructor Profile

Program content and timing●④

Viewing and critique
The completed mobiles were arranged around Ohsumi’s
works for appreciation. By experiencing the workshop, theparticipants were able to understand the realism of capturing
the wind and the ingenuity of balancing the work to make itstand on its own, which they had not been able to understandin the morning. Ohsumi told them, “I want you to try
replacing the stones or adding parts to the mobiles according
to the season. The actual sculptures can be reassembled withparts in the same way as the mobiles in this workshop,” hesaid. ⑤•use various materials and tools such as metal and metal fittings.
I think it was wonderful to have an opportunity like this to use
professional materials and techniques, and also to share it withan instructor who is currently active in the field. (Woman, 40s
and her daughter)Usually in a workshop, the children are the main participants andtheir parents are supposed to assist them, but today’s workshop
was a good stimulus for both parents and children, because they
considered themselves as rivals. (Woman, 30s and her son)I felt like I used my five senses, which I usually don’t, such as
touching the stones and thinking about balance. It is good tohave a time when you can concentrate on something. (Woman,
40s and her daughter)We did something we normally can’t individually. It was good tobe able to work on this with my child without worrying about
home. (Woman, 30s and her son)Materials
pliers, radio pliers, electric drill, drill blades for stones, stones,
titanium plates, aluminum wire, stainless steel wire, M3 stainlesssteel screws and nuts, double stainless steel rings, terminal parts,
adhesives, plastic gloves, aprons, etc.
In addition, Hideo Ohsumi’s works were specially displayed outdoors
for the participants to appreciate them.

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Instructor Profile

Program content and timing
Introduction
We held a workshop in the 1F lobby of the National Art
Center, Tokyo, which was expected to be crowded withpeople from children to adults during the summer vacation.
We invited anyone interested without any reservationor preparation of any kind to join in and enjoy making
something. ①

ARTIST WORKSHOPThe Section of Education &Public Programs NACT Staff
Summary
Pin-on badges are easy to make and easy to participate in. Bothadults and children were enthusiastic about creating them, withvarious combinations and colorful illustrations. (NW)

Feedback from participants• Once I started, I was more absorbed in it than I expected. It wasa fun time thinking about color combinations and designs.
• I participated with my son (3rd grade). At first, he was saying he•

Come-As-You-Art Craft Workshop—Let’s Make an Original Pin-On Badge!—
•
•
•
•
•

●
②

Date: August 19 (Sun.), 2018 11:00 - 16:00
Participants: 108
Target: Anyone
Entry fee: 100 yen per badge
Location: 1F lobby

Outline During the summer vacation, a workshop was held in the
1F lobby of the National Art Center, Tokyo, where many people werepassing by, to allow anyone to drop in and enjoy making pin-on
badges.

Materials

1

Designing the base paper

2

Making badges

Participants made badges after drawing their favorite designs
on a circular base paper.
There were many materials to choose from. ②
They drew illustrations by hand or made a collage with paperand stickers. ③④

When the base paper was finished, they placed them on themetal fittings and put them on the badge making machine tocomplete their own original pin-on badge. ⑤⑥
There were pop illustrations, elegant Japanese patterns, andcool geometric patterns. Some of the designs were related tothe current exhibition. ⑦⑧⑨

●
⑦

●
③

3
36

pencils, erasers, colored pencils, colored pens, masking tape,stickers, colored paper, paper copies of fabric, scissors, glue, pinon badge machine, pin-on badge parts

●
①

●
⑤

●
④

couldn’t come up with an idea for even one, but once he madethe first badge, he seemed to be motivated and enjoyed it. Thankyou very much. Adults also enjoyed it.
It was fun and easy even for my 4-year-old. My child seemed
to enjoy it as ideas popped up one after another as we useddifferent materials.

●
⑩

●
⑥
●
⑧

Display the products on the monitor
Each badge was a gem of its own.
The museum staff took pictures of the completed badges
and displayed them on a monitor in the lobby so that many
people present could appreciate them. ⑩“Look! That’s mine!” The participants cheered every time
their artwork appeared on the monitor, creating a lot of
excitement in the hall.
●⑨

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Workshops 2018

Introduction
For the first time in approximately three years, a workshop forpreschool children was held, led by Rintaro Hara and Yu Hara
and with the theme of “Shadow of Me in Motion.”

ARTIST WORKSHOP

1
15 min.

●④

Shadow Merry-Go-Round••••

Date and time: December 1 (Sat.), 2018 10:30 - 12:00, 14:00 - 15:30
Participants: 23 groups 63 people (1st session: 10 groups 27 people,
2nd session: 13 groups 36 people)
Target: Preschool children (3-6 years old) and their parents/guardians
Entry fee: Free
Place: 3F Auditorium, Gallery 1B•

2
40 min.

OutlineWith Rintaro Hara and Yu Hara as guest instructors, we held aworkshop for children aged 3 to 6 to experience creating and viewing
art with their families.

3
10 min.

●①

Instructor Profile

Program content and timing●②

4
15 min.

Introduction of instructors’ activities andworkshop procedure

Artists

The workshop venue was the National Art Center, Tokyo
auditorium, where participants sat on cardboard on the floor
and listened to a lecture by the instructors, Rintaro Hara and
Yu Hara, about their works and creative activities.
Next, the instructors explained the production procedure, andfinally the participants got down to work.

Rintaro Hara is an installation artist and Yu Hara is a painter. In
addition to their individual activities, they often work as a unit,
producing interactive hands-on artworks that can be enjoyed bychildren and adults alike. Major exhibitions include the 2012 and2015 Echigo-Tsumari Art Triennale (Niigata), the 2017 and 2021
Northern Alps Art Festival (Nagano), the 2019 Setouchi Triennale(Kagawa), and the 2019 and 2020 Splish Splash Fair (EchigoTsumari Satoyama Museum of Contemporary Art, KINARE, Niigata).
In summer 2021, their giant board game Tsumari Sugoroku waspermanently installed in the gymnasium of Katakuri House (Niigata),
a former school turned ryokan inn located in Akiyamago (Niigata).
In 2008, their picture book Nioi wo Kagareru Kaguyahime ~Nihon
Mukashibanashi Remix~ (The Moon Princess Being Smelled By –Japanese Old Tales Remix) won the Excellence Award at the JapanMedia Arts Festival , Entertainment Division.

Making one’s own “shadow”
In this workshop, life-sized “shadows” of the participating
children were created. First, the children adopted poses
lying down on a large piece of thick paper, and adults traced
outlines around them. After cutting the paper along theoutlines, participants cut out eyes, noses, circles, stars, etc.,
as desired, and pasted cellophane on the cut-out sections.
Adults were in charge of cutting out the pieces of paper,
while children helped to paste the cellophane and draw on
the transparent sheets. Once the cellophane was attached,
the “shadows” were completed. ①②③

Relocation to gallery, mounting of“shadows”
Once all the children’s “shadows” were created, they took
the large elevator, usually for staff only, to an empty gallery.
There, a rotating wooden frame was prepared. The “shadows”
were hung on the frame, and after a countdown of “3, 2, 1...”

Rintaro Hara + Yu Hara

Summary
Rintaro Hara and Yu Hara were invited as instructors of a workshop
where children aged three to six and their families experienced
production and viewing of their own original works. Parents andchildren worked together to produce life-size “shadows” of thechildren, and viewed the “shadows” dancing around the gallery
walls. Children chased after their own shadows, posed in imitationof the shadows, and took pictures with their families, all the while
enjoying the magical space with its many spinning shadows. It
seemed that participants, instructors, and staff were all thrilled at
the sight of the Shadow Merry-Go-Round in the gallery. (NY)

Feedback from participants• The shadows were even more wonderful than I had expected. It

Viewing of “shadows”•

The lights in the gallery were turned off and large shadows
were projected on the walls. Children’s colorful “shadows”
ran along the walls of the gallery, and the children ran aroundchasing their shadows while adults happily looked on. ④⑤••

was also a rare opportunity to display our original creations in avenue that actually exhibits artwork, and we all enjoyed it. (Girl, 5,Girl, 3, Woman, 40s, participating as a group)It was great to be in a different situation than usual, and do akind of activity we don’t usually do. (Boy, 3, Man, 40s, Woman,
40s, participating as a group)We were happy to see our son actively participating and get asense of him growing as we created the “shadow.” (Boy, 3, Man,
40s, Woman, 30s, participating as a group)This was a great opportunity for me to work together with mydaughter and create something dynamic that we would not havebeen able to make at home. Since we used materials that werefamiliar to me, we could do something similar at home. (Girl, 5,
Woman, 30s, participating as a group)

Materials
large sheets of thick paper, pencils, pens, scissors, cellophane,scotch tape, transparent sheets, utility knives, cutting mats, rulers,
paper for stencils, wooden frames (with motors for rotation andlight bulbs)
●
③

38

●
⑤

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1

ARTIST WORKSHOP

15 min.

2
20 min.

●④Creation with Lacquer, Living with
Lacquer
•
•
•
•
•

●
①

Date: January 14 (Mon., national holiday), 2019 13:00 - 16:30
Participants: 14
Target: Junior high school students and over
Entry fee: 1,000 yen
Place: Annex, 3F multipurpose room3
150 min.

OutlineWe invited Taro Sakata, a lacquer artist, so that we could experience
the charm of lacquer as “beauty in daily life” and “beauty in use”
through viewing and creating lacquer works.

4●②

20 min.

●③

40

Instructor Profile

Program content and timing

●
⑤

●
⑥

●
⑦

●
⑧

Lecture and introduction of the lecturer
Sakata is active not only as an artist but also in a wide
range of lacquer art workshops. “You may regard lacquer assomething special that appears on special occasions such as
New Year’s Day or celebrations, something a little distant fromeveryday life. However, lacquer has supported our daily lives
in various ways for more than 10,000 years.” In the lecture,
we learned about the process of how lacquer is extracted andturned into material, as well as the fact that lacquer is not
only used as a coating but also as glue.

Introduction to Lacquer
After becoming familiar with lacquer through the lecture,
the participants watched Sakata demonstrate how to use
lacquer. He explained that there are different types of lacquer,
and that the color, viscosity, and effects as coating material
vary depending on what is mixed in it. The participants were
especially surprised when they saw tofu being used as a
mixture. In this workshop, we focused on the “adhesive”
function of lacquer. ①②

Lacquer artist

Taro Sakata
Born in Fukuoka in 1969. Graduated from Tokyo University of theArts, with a master’s degree in Japanese Lacquer in Departmentof Crafts. His graphic work Japonisme was published in the design
magazine Idea (1991). His works have been selected for the Japan
Traditional Lacquer Art Exhibition (1996), the Japan Traditional Crafts
Exhibition (1998), the Japan-Korea Crafts Exhibition (2001), and the
Ceramic, Metal, and Lacquer Art Exhibition at the Joshibi Universityof Art and Design (2012), among many others. He has held awide range of workshops and training sessions throughout Japan,
including Omotesenke Tea Ceremony Class and Maki-e Workshop(2010) and HANDS DO PROJECT Tokyu Hands×Haryo Lacquer
Works: Designing Vessels Using Traditional Techniques, Kintsugi and
Maki-e Experience (2013). He is the author of Kintsugi for Beginners(Sekaibunka-sha, 2018).

Production
Once they had learned about lacquer, it was time for
production. The participants were given lacquer coated plates
that Sakata had prepared in advance, and they decorated
them by applying lacquer with the theme of “beauty in daily
life.” In addition to traditional materials such as mother-ofpearl, chalk powder, and eggshells, everyday materials such as
pearls, beads, and tiles were also used. They chose materials
according to the image they wanted to express. Everyone
was fully protected to prevent lacquer from getting on theirskin or clothes. While looking at the various materials, theparticipants formulated the concept of the lacquer works theywould like to see in their daily lives. They placed lace overthe lacquered area and sprinkled chalk powder on top of it
to create a gorgeous pattern. They applied lacquer unevenly
on purpose and then decorated it. The characteristics oflacquer, which can change freely, were utilized. Some people
did not use any decoration at all, and instead focused on
accentuating the various textures and expressions of thelacquer. ③④⑤

Presentation of works
After two and a half hours of production, we gathered all theparticipants together for a presentation of their works, andasked each of them to talk about how they felt when they
dealt with lacquer and explain the theme of their work. There
were a variety of works, including those brilliantly decorated
with mother-of-pearl inlays, pearls, and chalk powder andthose that highlighted the differences in color and texture oflacquer. One said, “I’m going to use it as a plate for Japanese
sweets.” and another said, “I think this will be a good
decoration for the room as a panel work.”“I didn’t expect to see this many different kinds of lacquer
works. I would be happy if this experience has made lacquer
become even a little more familiar to everyone,” said Sakata.
The workshop ended with a light-hearted joke about how
to deal with a rash from lacquer just in case, and everyone
laughed a lot. ⑥⑦⑧

Summary
The aim of this workshop was to bring participants into contact
with lacquer, a material that they rarely have the opportunity
to come into contact with, and to familiarize them with lacquer,
which has a fixed stereotype of being somewhere far awayfrom their daily lives. Despite the limited time available for theworkshop, the participants genuinely enjoyed the lectures andthe production of lacquer, and had lively conversations with one
another about lacquer as a beauty in daily life. (NW)

Feedback from participants• I learned a lot from the various aspects of lacquer in the shorttime I was there. (Man, 20s)
• Since I had been only familiar with lacquer as a finished product,••

it was really good to see the working process and to experience
actually making something out of it. I realized that there reallywere infinite variations of lacquer depending on what is mixed inwith lacquer, its use, and the combination of colors and materials.
Thank you very much for a wonderful time. (Woman, 40s)
I really enjoyed dealing with lacquer! I am glad that I will be able
to incorporate lacquer into my daily life other than as tableware.
(Woman, 30s)
This was my first experience with lacquer crafts, and it wasvery interesting and enjoyable. The teacher’s explanations wereeasy to understand, and the care taken to create an enjoyable
atmosphere was pleasant. The support from the staff was also
very good. (Man, 40s)

Materials
lacquer, mother-of-pearl, chalk powder, eggshells, beads, Japanese
paper, linen string, leather, lace, pearls, tiles, stencils, newspaper,
Kent paper, scissors, cutters, dry sheets, wet wipes, rags, saladoil, tofu, alcohol, camphor oil, paper palette, spatulas, brushes,sponges, bamboo sticks, tweezers, lab coats, gloves, masks,
goggles, shoe covers

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ARTIST WORKSHOP

30 min.

2
40 min.

●④

Let’s Make “Ambiguous Class Business
Cards”!
• Date and time: February 17 (Sun.), 2019, 13:00 - 17:00• Participants: 18• Target: Elementary school students (5th grade) and over
• Entry fee: Free
• Place: Annex, 3F multipurpose room

Outline Participants chose words to represent themselves, anddesigned characters for personal stamps made from erasers. They thenused the personal stamps to make business cards and exchanged
them, sharing their values and ideas.

3
100 min.

●①

Instructor Profile

Program content and timing●②

4
30 min.

Introduction of instructor’s activities
Instructor Sachiko Kazama, an artist who primarily creates
woodblock prints, showed photos of her past works andtalked about the episodes that motivated her to produce
them. She has produced over 50 Ambiguous Class Stamps , a
project that participants engaged with through this workshop,
making stamps by carving erasers with words including social
classes of the past and internet slang terms. Kazama explainsthat while a social class is a kind of brand that represents
one’s position, “by stamping your own personal stamp, you
can pretend to be something you are not.” ①

Workshop lecture and wordplay
The stamp Kazama created for this workshop reads “kicked
off the team.” The phrase has implications of negative
feelings and weakness, but her powerful design gave theimpression of strong will.
After the lecture, participants chose their own words andphrases to be made into business cards. They discussed
their impressions of their appearance, their true selves, and
who they want to be, and searched for words to describe
themselves, free from the constraints of occupations or
titles, writing down key words that fit them perfectly,
described their exact opposite, were self-deprecating and soforth. Some participants did not restrict themselves to preexisting phrases, but instead combined words that came totheir minds, used phonetic spellings, or came up with newcoinages. ②③

Conception and production of works
The erasers used to make personal stamps had sizes of 7.5
cm x 3 cm. Text was arranged within this restricted space,with the shape and design of characters designed to fit
the impression made by the phrases. Once designs werecomplete, they were transferred to erasers with tracing paperand cut out using gouges or precision utility knives. Aftermaking cuts around the outsides of characters, participants
carefully oriented the angles of their blades so as not to cut
off sections of the erasers, and moved forward with the workof creating the stamps. ④
Once the personal stamps made from erasers were fully
carved, participants stamped them on cards in colors of
their choice, and the Ambiguous Class Business Cards werecomplete. ⑤

Presentation of works, exchange ofbusiness cards
Finally, all the participants gathered around the Ambiguous Class
Business Cards and presented their own works one by one.
After the presentations, participants exchanged businesscards and enjoyed conversation. ⑥

ArtistSachiko Kazama
Sachiko Kazama was born in Tokyo in 1972. She completed theprintmaking course at Musashino Art School in 1996. Kazama
primarily produces woodblock prints that powerfully deploy ink
gradations and sharp lines created with carving gouges. She deals
deftly with sometimes edgy and socially critical themes, and her
cartoonish, nonsensical, humorous and keenly witty works havedrawn attention both in Japan and abroad. Major recent exhibitions
include FEMINISMS (21st Century Museum of Contemporary Art,
Kanazawa, 2021), Tokyo Contemporary Art Award 2019-2021:
Kazama Sachiko Magic Mountain (Museum of Contemporary
Art Tokyo, 2021), Nissan Art Award 2020 Finalists Exhibition(Nissan Pavilion, 2020), Co/Inspiration in Catastrophes (Museumof Contemporary Art, Taipei, 2019), Concrete Suite (Kurobe City
Art Museum, 2019), and Dyslympia 2680 (Maruki Gallery For The
Hiroshima Panels, 2018). A collection of her works, Empire of theOmen (Asahi Press, 2018), has been published.

Summary
By engaging in production of Ambiguous Class Stamps (theinstructor’s ongoing project), workshop participants thought
about words and their meanings. This was an opportunity forthem to reflect on their daily lives and take a closer look atthemselves, and it was impressive to see how the students not
only chose words but also designed the text to get closer to theimage they were trying to produce. Exchanging business cards
while explaining one’s “class” was a humorous means of selfintroduction, and allowed people to share feelings and values. (YU)

Feedback from participants• I really enjoyed seeing how other people came up with ideas,••••

fonts, words and expressions that I could not have thought of on
my own. (Girl, 11)
It was very interesting because I decided what to write while
talking with people in my group, deciding in the end on writing
something that I had not expected. (Woman, 20s)
I came to understand the concept of Ambiguous Class Stamps
more deeply by actually making one of these works myself.
(Woman, 20s)
It was a memorable experience, including when the instructor,
Ms. Kazama, spoke to me in person. It was my first time making
a personal stamp, and I was glad at how well it turned out. (Man,30s)
The carving process was more difficult than I had imagined, but
I was happy that I was able to complete it, with the artist, staff,
and participants helping me in various situations. (Woman, 40s)

Materials provided

●
⑥
●
③

42

●
⑤

erasers, A4-size paper, pencils, ruler sets, tracing paper, utility
knives, precision utility knives, sculpting chisels (rounded blade:
3mm, 4mm, 4.5mm, triangular blade: 3mm), felt-tip pens (4colors), calligraphy pens (4 colors), inking pads (4 colors), paperfor business cards

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Facilitators

Program content and timing

1

ARTIST WORKSHOP

20 min.

2
40 min.

Ice breaker
First, we explained the purpose of the workshop, which wasto discover ways to enjoy the museum beyond just looking
at the exhibits, and then had everyone including museum
staff introduce themselves. We wanted them to remember
the names of people who would be doing things together, ina game format. Once the tense faces of the participants had
relaxed a bit, the workshop began.

Architecture tour
To ensure that there was no difference in understanding
between those who had visited the National Art Center, Tokyo
before and those who had not, we gave a 40-minute tourin which all participants explored the entire museum. Since
the purpose of the tour was to allow them to experiencethe museum, we encouraged them to not only listen to theguides, but also to actually touch, hear the sounds of, and feelthe museum with their whole body. ①

The Section of Education &Public Programs NACT Staff
Interviewees: Museum Shop SFT staff, 1F Central
Information staff, Education and Public Program Section
interns, and Education and Public Program Section staff

Summary
The main goal for this workshop, from the planning stage, wasto change the way we perceive building space, and consider
different ways of looking at the places we spend our days, byunderstanding how we and others perceive space and broadening
our view of space. We wanted the participants to break out of their
fixed way of looking at things and to make discoveries throughconversations with others. I believe that through the interviews,
the participants expanded their interest in museums, even if only alittle, and learned to find their own favorite spots when they visit
other places by enjoying conversations with various people. (IO)

Feedback from participants●④

Found How to Enjoy a Museum:Look! Explorers• Date: March 3 (Sun.), 2019 13:00 - 16:00• Participants: 9• Target: Elementary school students 3rd to 6th grade• Entry fee: Free
• Location: 3F lecture rooms A and B, and various locations in the museum

Outline This workshop was designed to give all participants, including

3
30 min.

children who have never been to an art museum before and those
who like art museums and have been many times, a chance todiscover a new way of exploring art museums.

4
60 min.

●①

30 min.

44

After understanding the physical layouts of the museum, theparticipants were divided into groups to interview museum
workers. The goal here is to get to know how others feel
about the museum. It was memorable to see the participants
eagerly writing on their worksheets the special tips theygathered, such as views that can be seen in the evening,which only people working there would know. ②③

Pop-up creation
After completing the activity of exploring the entire museum,
the participants made pop-ups to tell others about what they
discovered and things they found interesting through thebuilding tours and interviews. Using tapes made of Japanese
paper, which can be stuck to walls and floors and then peeled
off, the participants put them on the locations they wanted torecommend to others. They enthusiastically worked throughtrial and error to help other visitors experience what they had
discovered through the workshop. ④• I had never had a chance to visit an art museum, but I am glad
•
•
•
•
•

that I could learn about various secrets through this event. I
would like to spend a lot of time exploring the museum with myfamily next time. (Girl, 11)
I discovered that all the workers were working at the art
museums because they had something they liked there. (Girl, 9)
It was interesting to compare the art museum to various foods(cheesecake, millefeuille, etc.). (Girl)
People working at the museum had different ideas about things
there. Museum shop staff said that she really enjoys working
there every day. (Girl, 10)
I thought that the work was tiring, but they were smiling andtalking happily. (Girl, 10)
They are not doing just one job, they are doing many different
jobs. (Boy, 9)Materials
pencils, erasers, color pens, poster colors, scissors, stickers (roundshape), washi tape (large masking tape)

●
②

5

●
③

Interviewing workers●⑤

Presentation of works
The parents of the participants were invited to join thepresentation which was made at each location they wereto recommend by using the pop-ups they had created.
Although they were a little nervous in front of others, they
confidently presented the things they had found, such as therecommended scenery and the secret of the elevator. ⑤⑥●⑥

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Introduction
In this workshop, participants from the general public were
given an opportunity to reflect on the works of Leiko Ikemura
through dialogue with staff members, and utilizing the entire
Leiko Ikemura exhibition space.

ARTIST WORKSHOP

1

Individual appreciation of the Leiko
Ikemura exhibition
For the first 30 minutes, each participant viewed theexhibition on his or her own.

30 min.

2●②

Art Appreciation Workshop: Seeing, Reading, and Looking
held in conjunction withat the Leiko Ikemura Exhibition Program
Leiko Ikemura Our Planet – Earth & Stars
•
•
•
•
•

Date: March 16 (Sat.), 2019 13:00 - 15:15
Participants: 4
Target: Anyone
Entry Fee: Free (exhibition tickets required)Place: Special Exhibition Gallery 1E

OutlineThis program was designed for participants to view the exhibited
works of Leiko Ikemura by discussing what they felt and thought
about, with the help of etchings and poems by her.

10 min.

3
25 min.

45 min.

5●①

20 min.

46

Re-assembly, introduction of participants
and staff, and overview of the exhibition
After viewing the exhibition individually, the participants
gathered at the entrance of the venue for a group session.
First, the curator in charge of planning the Leiko Ikemura
exhibition gave an overview of the exhibition. ①

The Section of Education &Public Programs NACT Staff
Summary
The Leiko Ikemura Our Planet – Earth & Stars exhibition included
poems by Ikemura herself interspersed among her paintings,
sculptures, drawings, and other works. The words of Ikemura’s
poems are an important factor in learning about her creative
activities. In this workshop, the participants appreciated Ikemura’s
works through discussing with each other their feelings andthoughts, assisted by her etchings and poems. The time spent
together in the exhibition room, filled with the creativity of Leiko
Ikemura, was an enriching experience for both the participants andthe staff. (NY)

Feedback from participants• I really enjoyed talking with the staff and the other participants
•
•

4

●
④

Facilitator

Program content and timing

Warming up
Next, all the participants warmed up for dialogue. They
viewed the opening piece of the exhibition, The Circle of Life ,and discussed ideas of the four seasons and life and death,sharing what they had realized. Then, they viewed Landing
and Trees out of Head while engaging in dialogue.

Group work
After all the participants appreciated the works together,
they were divided into groups of 4 or 5 for group work. Afterreading her poem Epilogue , the participants shared theirimpressions of it and phrases they liked, and then each one
chose a place or one of the exhibited works around which
they would like to read the poem. ②③•

about her poems and words, which are important forunderstanding her works. (Woman, 20s)
I felt that I could understand Ikemura’s overall philosophy,
starting with her early works, The Circle of Life . I was able tospend an enriching time by sharing the thoughts of various otherpeople. (Woman, 50s)
By looking at Ikemura’s works carefully while talking withother people, I was able to appreciate her works from different
perspectives. I had never had this kind of experience before, so it
was very stimulating. (Man, 20s)
It was fun and valuable to spend time talking with other people
in front of the works. In terms of the session where we put thepoem and the work together, I would have liked to have a little
more time with the group, going around and looking at theartworks, listening to various opinions and thinking about thequestions asked. (Woman, 50s)

Materials
clipboards, pencils, paper for Circle of Life , paper for Epilogue poem,
list of works, map of exhibition rooms, tote bags, tablets

Presentation and sharing
All the participants gathered in the central room of theexhibition hall and announced the place and work they had
chosen to read the poem around. They shared the photos
they had taken of their chosen places and works on theirtablets. The workshop ended with a return to the Circle ofLife at the entrance of the exhibition room to hear everyone’s
impressions. ④●③

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ARTIST WORKSHOP

2●②

My Koinobori Now! 2019
•
•
•
•
•

48

Date: April 21 (Sun.), 2019, 10:00 - 18:00
Participants: 222
Target: Anyone
Entry fee: Free
Place: 1F lobby

Instructor

Program content and timing

OutlineChoosing paper of various patterns
With Children’s Day coming up, a workshop was held tocreate paper “koinobori” (carp streamers). We used the samekoinobori kits that were used for the hands-on workshop
related to Koinobori Now! Installation by Reiko Sudo, Adrien
Gardère and Seiichi Saito , held in 2018. Twenty different
patterns of paper were available for the participants tocombine and put on a base paper to create a colorful
koinobori. ①

Attach “various patterned papers” freely
on the base paper
Upon registration, participants were free to take paper ofvarious patterns of their choice from the tray placed on thework desk. Usually, 20 to 30 sheets are needed to make one
koinobori. The participants lined up the “various patterned
papers” on the koinobori base paper, thinking about thedesign of the scales. After deciding on the arrangement, theypeeled off the double-sided adhesive tape from the basepaper and attached the “various patterned papers.” ②③

3

Draw eyes

4

Cut the base paper

The Section of Education &Public Programs NACT Staff
SummaryMore than 200 people, including families, friends, and visitors fromoverseas, participated in this workshop held right before Children’sDay, and they enjoyed making koinobori in their own styles, using
their ingenuity. Some attached paper in 3D, and others made several
koinobori by changing the combination of paper, and they showed
their completed ones to each other as a family. This event called “My
Koinobori Now!” originated from the Koinobori Now! exhibition
held in 2018, and it will be our annual event. (NY)Materials provided“My Koinobori Now!” production kit (base paper, various patterned
paper), scissors, pens

After pasting the “various patterned paper,” the participants
drew in the koinobori’s eyeballs with a pen. ④

A workshop for making paper carp streamers was held at a speciallydesignated area in the NACT’s 1F lobby, where anyone could
participate.

●
①

●
④

●
③

●
⑤

Finally, the participants cut the base paper out along theframe lines to complete the koinobori. (They were also
allowed to cut out the base paper first and then paste the“various patterned papers.”) They brought their work homeand put it on the wall or stuck it to a pole. ⑤⑥●⑥

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Workshops 2019

Instructor Profile

Program content and timing

1

ARTIST WORKSHOP

Registration, production of pin-on badge
designs
On a Sunday morning, desks were arranged and two pinon badge machines set up in one corner of the 1F lobby. A
Come-As-You-Art Craft Workshop, the first in a year, thengot underway. The workshop was open to anyone with noreservations required, and they could participate in groups, so
participants included those who knew about the workshop in
advance, those who happened to pass through the 1F lobby,
or those who dropped by after viewing an exhibition.
After registering for the workshops, participants createddesigns by hand-drawing or collaging on circular paper 75mm
in diameter, the size and shape of the pin-on badges, provided
on the desks. Materials for drawing and collage included
colored pens, colored pencils, pastels, colorful masking
tape, stickers, drawing paper, paper with colorful decorative
patterns, photocopied fabrics of various patterns, English
newspapers and so on. Participants used these materials tocreate their own designs on the pieces of paper. ①②③

The Section of Education &Public Programs NACT Staff
Summary
Following the Come-As-You-Art Craft Workshop in summer 2018,
another workshop was held in 2019 in the 1F lobby, where visitors
could drop in and make their own pin-on badges. Over 100 people
enjoyed making pin-on badges with family, friends, and visitorsfrom abroad. During this Come-As-You-Art Workshop, more people
made collages for their pin-on badge designs than hand-drew
them, perhaps because an abundance of colorful decorative paper,
origami paper, and photocopies of textiles with various patterns
was provided. Some people were observed standing in front of themonitor showing the completed pin-on badges and looking at themintently. (NY)

Feedback from participants• I got so absorbed in the activity that it took me back to my●③

Come-As-You-Art Craft Workshop 2019
—Let’s Make an Original Pin-On Badge!—• Date and time: July 21 (Sun.), 2019, 11:00 - 16:00• Participants: 122• Target: Anyone• Entry fee: 100 yen per pin-on badge• Place: 1F lobby

2

Pressing with pin-on badge machine
Once designs were completed, participants placed the paper
and transparent cover on top of a metal fitting and pressed itwith a machine to complete the pin-on badge. ④••

Outline In the 1F lobby, where many people come and go, a workshop washeld in which visitors could casually drop in and make pin-on badges. Thanks
to the ease and simplicity of the workshop, which did not require any advance
preparation or reservations, adults and children alike enjoyed making badges.

childhood. My son (second grade of junior high school), who is
not good at art, also enjoyed it.
I felt like a child again and had a great time. The staff were allvery kind and courteous, and I came to love the National Art
Center, Tokyo.
It had been a long time since I had concentrated on creating
something like this, and it was a lot of fun.

Materials provided

3

Photographing of badges and display on
monitors

pencils, erasers, colored pencils, colored pens, marker pens, pastels,
masking tape, stickers, colored paper, washi paper, wrapping paper,
scissors, glue, pin-on badge machine, pin-on badge parts

The completed pin-on badges were photographed with adigital camera, and the photos were displayed on a monitor
in the lobby. In front of the monitor, participants happily took
pictures with family and friends holding the pin-on badges
they had made.

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50

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1

ARTIST WORKSHOP

20 min.

2
10 min.

●①

Listening Closely to an Art Center in Roppongi—Imagining Sounds, Creating with Ears
• Date and time: August 12 (Mon., national holiday), 2019, 10:30 - 12:30• Participants: 21• Target: Elementary school students (3rd grade) and over • Entry fee: Free• Place: Annex, 3F multipurpose room, various locations on the NACT
premises (including outdoors)

Outline In this workshop with the theme of “sound,” participants experienced sound ina different way than usual. Participants transformed their listening experience by making
simple devices for emitting sounds and for picking up sounds, and carefully and mindfully
listened to the auditory environment inside and outside the National Art Center, Tokyo.

3
10 min.

4
55 min.

●
②

●
③

5
15 min.
●④

52

Instructor Profile

Program content and timing
Introduction of instructor and selfintroduction through sound education
Artist Soichiro Mihara was introduced, and the workshop got
underway with a sound listening exercise. Participants closed
their eyes, listened quietly and attentively, and wrote down
the sounds they heard on sheets of paper for one minute.
Then, as a self-introduction exercise, participants shared thesounds they had heard.

Practicing listening to sound by creating
sound-generating devices and soundcollection devices
Bamboo-leaf oak branches were cut into small pieces, screw
holes were made and screws inserted to make bird-calls(sound-generation devices), and pieces of yarn were attached
so they could be hung from people’s necks. Then, thick piecesof paper cut into fan shapes were rolled into bugle-like forms
to make sound-collection devices. Participants practiced
awareness of the directionality of sound by making soundswith their own sound-generation devices, and listening to
the sound-collection devices by placing them to their ears to
see where sounds were coming from. The bamboo-leaf oak
branches came from pruning of trees planted on the NACT
premises. ②

Mini-lecture by Soichiro Mihara
Mihara showed his work Imaginary Rhetoric (bringing theactual work to the venue), and participants listened to thesounds it makes. These sounds are like birds chirping, but they
are actually produced by wood and metal rubbing together,and have no biological significance. The artist spoke about his
creative intentions, saying that people (and even birds) havemistaken the sounds for the calls of birds, and he found thatthe act and thought process of finding meaning in the soundwas similar to creating concepts in art. ⑤

Listening to sounds inside and outside the
NACT with sound-generation devices
The group took a “walk by ear” around the NACT groundswith their sound-generation and sound-collection devices.
As it was midsummer, the noise of numerous cicadas seemedto drown out other sounds, but listening carefully, participantsrealized that there were differences among individual cicadas
as well. When they went around to the back of the NACT, they
heard various other sounds such as birdsong and car noises.
Inside the building, they entered the galleries, which were
empty as an exhibition was in preparation. They experienced
how sound spins in an enclosed space, unlike outside,and become aware of the differences in the way sound isperceived, as well as the sound of air conditioning, which
they do not usually notice. ①③④

Return to annex (3F multipurpose room),sharing impressions of workshop
After participants returned to the initial room, Mihara gave
another lecture on the nature of sound. Participants thenlearned more about sound by listening to a variety of soundsources, and ended the session by sharing their impressions.

ArtistSoichiro Mihara
Mihara creates open systems engaged with the world that employ
a wide range of materials and phenomena such as acoustics, foams,
radiation, rainbows, microbes, moss, air streams, soil, humidity andelectrons in order to reinterpret them as art. Since 2011, he has
been involved in the Blank Project, which examines the relationshipbetween technology and society, both in Japan and overseas. Since
2013, he has been participating in a series of artist-in-residencies
in 18 locations in 9 countries, from the Arctic Circle to tropicalrainforests, from military borders to bio-art labs, from the centerof art to extreme environments. He has won awards including at
Ars Electronica, Transmediale , and the Japan Media Arts Festival ,and was on the jury of the Prix Ars Electronica in 2019. In recent
years, he has also been involved in conservation and restoration ofsound art and media art for which methodologies have not yet been
established.

Summary
Through this workshop, participants became aware of numerous
sounds that they usually do not pay attention to, and their ears
became more sensitized. It also became clear that even whenpeople think they are listening without bias, they are influenced
by what they see and by words they hear, and at times the ear
subconsciously selects and edits sounds. The act of listening
mindfully, seeking out sounds that usually go unnoticed, was like an
exploration of the essence of art. (TM)Feedback from participants• It was a fascinating experience for me to focus on sounds around
•
•
•
•
•

me in a way I usually do not. Thank you very much. (Woman,
40s)
The sounds I heard when I put the bugle to my ears weredifferent from what I was used to, and I was amazed. (Boy, 10)
Taking the time to listen to sounds that I normally don’t pay
attention to was really interesting for me. My two sons engaged
with the experience in a way I don’t often see, and I plan to try it
again with them. (Woman, 40s)
I was able to renew my awareness of the auditory environment. I
became interested in sound art, and will pay attention to it in the
future. (Man, 40s)
I enjoyed making something out of wood that makes sounds likebirds singing. (Girl, 10)I was able to sense sounds that I am not conscious of in daily life,
and it gave me a new awareness of my own perceptions. (Man,
40s)

Materials provided
paper, pencils, erasers, bamboo-leaf oak branches, yarn, screws,
thick paper, double-sided tape●⑤

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Introduction
Participants viewed Le Couloir des fantômes (Corridor of
Ghosts) , which Boltanski produced for the Tokyo venue of his
exhibition Christian Boltanski: Lifetime , and in the workshop
they imagined the world of ghosts and created shadow
puppets.

ARTIST WORKSHOP

1
15 min.

2●⑤

20 min.

Who’s on the Other Side of the Curtain?—held in conjunction with
Let’s Make a World of Ghosts Program
Christian Boltanski: Lifetime
Outline• Date and time: August 18 (Sun.), 2019, 10:30 - 12:30• Participants: 26
As an event related to the exhibition Christian Boltanski: Lifetime , a• Target: Elementary and junior high school students and their parents/guardians workshop was conducted in which participants portrayed the world of• Entry fee: Free
ghosts through shadow puppets.
• Place: 3F Auditorium, Special Exhibition Gallery 2E

3
40 min.

4
10 min.

5
15 min.
●①●②

6
15 min.

●③54

Facilitators

Program content and timing

WarmupAfter hearing an explanation of the workshop procedure,
participants gathered in the auditorium and beganwriting down, on worksheets, the impressions and visualcharacteristics that came to mind when they heard the word
“ghost.” When they shared their impressions, phrases suchas “no legs,” “long hair,” “dimly lit,” “dressed in white,” and“looks sad” were heard. ①

Viewing of Boltanski exhibition
The group relocated to Special Exhibition Gallery 2E, where
they viewed works in the Christian Boltanski: Lifetime
exhibition including Le Couloir des fantômes (Corridor of
Ghosts), Ombres (Shadows), and Ombres: L’Ange (Shadows:
Angel) . ②

Production of “ghosts”
After returning to the auditorium, participants drew theirimages of ghosts and things in the world of the dead on
black drawing paper with white pencils, and cut them out toproduce “ghosts.” Thin strips of bamboo were attached to thebacks of the drawing paper to make it strong enough to be
used as a shadow puppet, and strings were attached to hangthe pieces of paper. ③

Setup of shadow puppets
The “ghosts” people created were mounted on large sheets
suspended from lighting batons (rods used to hang lights orsigns from the ceiling), which are among the auditorium’s
facilities. ④

Viewing of shadow puppets
The batons from which the sheets and “ghosts” weresuspended were raised to the ceiling, and when all thelights except for the spotlights were turned off... the ghosts
appeared through the sheets. As in Boltanski’s work Le
Couloir des fantômes (Corridor of Ghosts) , electric fans wereused to blow air from behind the sheets so the ghosts would
tremble and sway. After the lights were dimmed, participants
were free to view the works from various angles and to takephotos. ⑤

The Section of Education &Public Programs NACT Staff
Summary
Inspired by Christian Boltanski’s work Le Couloir des fantômes(Corridor of Ghosts) , a workshop was held with the goal of
expressing the world of ghosts through shadow puppets. Participants
first wrote down things that came to mind when they heard theword “ghost” on their worksheets, then relocated to a gallery andviewed Le Couloir des fantômes (Corridor of Ghosts) . While many of
the ghosts that participants envisioned were “legless,” “dimly lit,”or “white,” Boltanski’s Le Couloir des fantômes (Corridor of Ghosts)
featured skeletons and ghosts that appeared only from the neck up.
After viewing the works, participants returned to the auditorium
and made their ghosts on black drawing paper, imagining “whatkind of ghosts would there be if there was a world of ghosts on
the other side of a curtain?” Finally, their creations were hung fromthe ceiling on sheets that resembled curtains and illuminated withspotlights to create a ghostly world in the auditorium just for thatday. (NY)

Feedback from participants• I thought it was great the way everyone made unique andcreative ghosts. (Boy, 10)• It was amazing that so many ideas came from single sheets ofpaper. (Girl, 11)• I was happy to see the ghost I made turn into a shadow puppet.
(Girl, 9)• I started to think that ghosts might really exist. (Boy, 10)• By being exposed to the artist’s work, it was easy to get an•

idea of what the workshop was about, and this helped with thecreation of our own work. Concentrating on making something
made me feel freed from daily life and refreshed. (Woman, 50s)
After viewing the exhibition, my daughter (age 9) seemed tosense something in the pile of old clothes (which she glimpsed)
and made a skeleton that was a Jewish ghost (Anne Frank). I was
impressed by the power of art to communicate without words.
(Woman, 40s)

Materials provided
worksheets, pencils, black drawing paper (quarto size), white
pencils, rulers, scissors, utility knives, cutting mats, thin strips ofbamboo, pliers, black packaging tape, scotch tape, sheets, electric
fans, clips, zip ties, string

Presentations about impressions ofworkshop participants
The workshop concluded with presentations by participants
about their impressions of the workshop. The workshop was
an opportunity to vicariously experience Boltanski’s creationof “ghosts” by viewing them and creating original “ghosts”
of their own, and to think about differences in the way ghosts
are imagined in Japan and in Europe.

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Workshops 2019

Verbal Imaging
Museum Tour with
Visually Impaired
PeopleIntroduction
A workshop was held for people with diverse abilities,
ways of seeing, and ways of thinking. In teams of aroundseven people, they viewed the exhibition Image Narratives:
Literature in Japanese Contemporary Art and discussed theirimpressions, feelings, and ideas together. There were twosessions, conducted with the cooperation of the group “Verbal
Imaging Museum Tour with Visually Impaired People.”

ARTIST WORKSHOP

1
15 min.

●①

Verbal Imaging Museum Tour with Visually
Program held in conjunction with Image Narratives:
Impaired People
Literature in Japanese Contemporary Art
Outline A “Verbal Imaging Museum Tour with Visually Impaired• Date and time: October 6 (Sun.), 2019, 11:00 - 13:00, 15:00 - 17:00• Participants: 24 (1st session: 11, 2nd session: 13) • Target: Anyone
People” was conducted as a program related to Image Narratives:• Entry fee: Free (exhibition tickets required)
Literature
in Japanese Contemporary Art , a group exhibition featuring• Place: Special Exhibition Gallery 1E
sixJapanesecontemporary artists.
Cooperation:
VerbalImagingMuseumTourwith
Visually
Impaired
People•2
75 min.

30 min.
●③Outline of exhibition, introduction of staff
The meeting place was in the 1F lobby in front of Special
Exhibition Gallery 1E. Participants were divided into twogroups, and were seated at tables where navigators from thegroup Verbal Imaging Museum Tour with Visually Impaired
People (one visually impaired person and one visuallyunimpaired person) were waiting to start the workshop.
First, the NACT staff gave an outline of the exhibition, andthen participants and staff from each group introduced
themselves.

Kenta Hayashi
Jin Jin Tei
Kenji Shiratori
Yasunori Yamazaki
The group, which began its activities in 2012, is composed of bothvisually impaired and visually unimpaired individuals. Aroundonce a month it holds art appreciation programs at museums andschools, where people from various backgrounds discuss “the act ofviewing,” regardless of whether they have a disability or not. Recent
significant activities include an appreciation program at the Tokyo
Photographic Art Museum, which has been ongoing since 2017, andthe Kikutabi Project: Yokohama Museum of Art Edition , producedwith theatrical actor Masahiro Oishi (Mamagoto, Nylon 100˚C)and others. Since 2020, the group has aimed to create forums foranyone to easily and safely discuss access to the arts and “the act ofviewing,” primarily through online viewing programs.

Summary3●②

Instructor Profile

Program content and timing

Appreciation of exhibition
Next, it was time for the main part of the workshop,
appreciation of the exhibition. The first group went into thegallery to view Keizo Kitajima’s photographs and Yuichiro
Tamura’s installation, while the other group viewed Tamura’s
installation and the gallery featuring Yasuko Toyoshima.
Participants shared their perspectives and ideas by verbalizing
and communicating “what could be seen” about the works
and spaces, such as shape, color, and size, and “whatcould not be seen,” such as impressions, feelings, andinterpretations. ①②③④

Review
After appreciating the exhibition, the group gathered again
in the 1F lobby to discuss works that left a lasting impression
on them and share their thoughts on the exhibition throughdialogue. There were comments relating to the difficulty of
conveying what one sees and feels in words, and statingthat it was intriguing to see how different people perceive
different things even when appreciating the same work in thesame space. ⑤

In 2017, a workshop for people from various backgrounds anddisabilities by “Verbal Imagining Museum Tour with Visually
Impaired People” was held in connection with the exhibition
Sunshower: Contemporary Art from Southeast Asia 1980s to
Now . This time, a similar workshop focused on an exhibition
featuring contemporary artists from Japan. In the gallery, where no
explanations or “correct answers” were provided, the participants
gradually engaged with the works, and discoveries and empathy
emerged as they discussed them with each other, in a manner
somewhat resembling the solving of a riddle. Time spent in frontof a single work of art, where people with different ways of seeing
and thinking and different experiences engaged in extensive
dialogue, brought new perspectives to the participants and provided
opportunities to demonstrate the possibilities of communication
through art appreciation. (NY)

Feedback from participants• This was a new and invigorating experience. It was not just
•
•
•

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56

people assisting the visually impaired, rather it was a novel
experience for all participants. (Man, 70s)
Usually, when I go somewhere with a friend who can see, I feel
as if we are both perceiving the same thing even if we don’t put
it into words. However, when more specific words were used
to describe things, I felt that the appreciation process itself hadchanged. (Woman, 20s)
Communicating what I saw was more difficult than I had
imagined, and this led to sharing of other people’s perspectives,
which deepened my appreciation. I enjoyed it very much.
(Woman, teens)It was really delightful to notice messages in works of art that I
would have overlooked if I were on my own. (Man, 20s)●⑤

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Workshops 2020

Introduction
What is “the self,” anyway? It is not often that we thinkcarefully about ourselves amid our busy everyday lives. In
this workshop, participants faced themselves thoroughly andhead-on.

ARTIST WORKSHOP

1
2
120 min.

●⑩

Where Does a Body Begin and End? What is a
Body? Dramatic Transformations with Paper!
• Date and time: January 26 (Sun.), 2020, 13:00 - 16:30• Participants: 14• Target: Elementary school students and over and their families• Entry fee: Free
• Place: Annex, 3F multipurpose room●③

OutlineWith artist Akira Higashi as instructor, a workshop was conductedon the theme of the body, enabling people to engage with and think
about the self.

●
②

●
④

●
⑦

3
45 min.

4

ArtistIntroduction of instructor’s activities
Akira Higashi, the instructor, produces works on the themeof “the scope of the self.” In the initial lecture, participants
heard about Higashi’s past activities and works.

15 min.

●①

Instructor Profile

Program content and timing

Making torsos
The theme of this workshop aimed at exploring the self was
the body. First, participants made torsos the same size as theirown using kraft paper similar in color to their skin.
(1) Playing with kraft paper
Participants were given large pieces of kraft paper, which
they crumpled into balls on a cue from Higashi so it would fit
comfortably in their hands.
(2) Cutting paper
Once the kraft paper was crumpled and softened up, astraight-edge prepared by Higashi was applied to the paper
and it was cut into large strips. ①(3) Making form based on one’s own body
Participants wrapped strips of paper around their bodies to“cast” forms of themselves. They covered their bodies fromthe shoulders to just below the navel, wrapping the paper
tightly so there were no gaps. ②(4) Making cutouts
With scissors, the forms were removed and cut into six parts.
③④⑤
The cut-out pieces of paper were placed on new sheets ofkraft paper, outlined with pencils, and cut out with scissors. ⑥(5) Attaching parts to make a torso
The six cut-out parts were glued together and made intoa torso. This was a very challenging task! As Higashi said,“It is a difficult process to assemble flat surfaces into
three-dimensional objects. Also, the human body is not
symmetrical.” It was a startling moment of realization of
the inability to freely manipulate what was supposed to bea “copy” of one’s own body, and of the complexity of thatbody. ⑦

Parafook Experience
After making the torsos as “avatars” of themselves, theparticipants experienced Parafook , one of Higashi’s bestknown creations. Wearing colorful Parafooks , everyone
looked as if they had become larger creatures of a different
species! As their bodies grew larger, they also enjoyed thestrange sensation of the boundary between themselves andother people blurring as others jumped inside the expanding
Parafooks . ⑧⑨

Akira Higashi
Akira Higashi was born in Hiroshima in 1974. He received a BFA
in sculpture from Kyoto City University of Arts in 1998. Working
with ordinary materials such as fabric and vinyl, he aims to create
interactive relationships between the viewer and the work of art.
Recent exhibitions include Splish-Splash-Fair (Echigo-Tsumari
Satoyama Museum of Contemporary Art KINARE, 2019), Tentomushi
Project 05 NEW HOME (Kyoto Art Center, 2014), and Natsu-nokakurega (Hiroshima City Museum of Contemporary Art, 2013). He
has been an artist in residence in the Nairobi Residence (Nairobi,
Kenya, 2011), Force of Nature (North Carolina, USA, 2006), andSakaidani Elementary School Residence (Kyoto, 2011). He has also
conducted numerous workshops for children and parents in various
locations.

Summary
Nothing is more familiar than the self, yet we rarely have theopportunity to ponder it in depth, to explore how we understandthe scope of the self and the way others’ awareness functions. By
confronting the self, with a focus on the body, this workshop gave
people time to notice things they had not been aware of before andreconsider what they had taken for granted. (NW)

Feedback from participants• This was a lot of fun. The conical costumes made me feel as if my••body had changed shape, as if I had become a different kind oforganism. (Woman, 40s)
When we were doing crafts, I was happy to be able to make amold of my body. During the experiential part, I enjoyed feelinglike I had gotten bigger. (Boy, 11)
It was very exciting to make a work of art just with my body andkraft paper. Thank you very much. (Woman, 50s)

Materials
Parafook (artwork by Akira Higashi), kraft paper, scissors, pencils,
colored pencils, magic markers, protective cardboard, glue, small
plastic bags, brushes, cushioning material, cardboard in roll form,
curing tape, masking tape

Engaging with torsos
The workshop ended with each participant facing theircompleted torso, and spending time literally face to face withthemselves. ⑩

15 min.
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58

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1

ARTIST WORKSHOP

55 min.

Warmup with Trickster
Nobuharu Asano’s signature work, Trickster , is a series ofceramic sculptures of trickster figures inspired by Japanese
mythology and Western indigenous tribes, which are neither
human (two-legged) nor animal (four-legged), and are
represented as three-legged figures that fall in between. First,
participants handled 20 Tricksters and carefully observed theirpatterns and shapes. ①(Lunch break)2
120 min.

●④

Your Own Avatar?! Make a “Maneckster,”a Bizarre Three-Legged Creature!
• Date and time: February 23 (Sun.), 2020, 11:00 - 17:00• Participants: 17• Target: Junior high school students and over, able to post images takenwith a smartphone or tablet on their own Twitter account• Entry fee: 500 yen • Place: Annex, 3F multipurpose room and elsewhere

Outline Participants imitated Nobuharu Asano’s signature work

Trickster , making personal avatars known as “Manecksters” (manemeans “imitation” in Japanese). They enjoyed communication onsocial media by posting Maneckster images and comments on Twitter.

3
30 min.

4
60 min.

●①

Instructor Profile

Program content and timing●②

Production
Next, participants made three-legged “Manecksters” out ofclay that hardens when heated in the oven, using Asano’s
Tricksters as a reference. To get used to handling oven-fired
clay, they practiced by shaping the clay into balls and making“Voronoi patterns” with a clay spatula. A Voronoi pattern isa type of geometric pattern, seen in nature in giraffes’ spots
and on dragonflies’ wings, and Asano often incorporates
them into his works. Participants consulted Asano when they
had any doubts about use of tools or designs. ②③

Lecture and oven-firing
The completed Manecksters were fired by heating them in an
oven. While they were being fired, Asano spoke about his pastworks, and also about how he communicates with viewers
through social media.

Sculptor

Nobuharu
Asano
Nobuharu Asano was born in 1979. He completed the Graduate
School of Sculpture, University of Tsukuba in 2004. Inspired by
the unique sensation he got when seeing doguu (humanoid andanimal figurines from prehistoric Japan), he became interested infiring clay and began making ceramic sculptures, focusing on nonhuman beings that dwell in dark places. After these sculptures madea splash on social media, viewers gave them the name Tricksters .
He also explores new forms of presentation via social media, suchas the Traveling Trickster Project , in which sculptures do “homestays” in various locations, and the Outdoor Classroom Project . He
has exhibited at the Nakanojo Biennale (2017, 2019, 2021) andelsewhere, and plans and organizes a series of exhibitions at Hitachino-kuni-soshagu Shrine.

Summary
Today people can easily interact with others all over the world
through the internet, and it is becoming possible to replace oneself
with an avatar in an online game and behave in a virtual space justas one would in the real world. In some cases, social media allows
people to express their thoughts more frankly than in person. Whatsorts of relationships and connections might Manecksters, whichwere created as the participants’ own personal avatars, build in the
future? (MS)Feedback from participants• This was my first time participating in a workshop, and I had a
Photographing and posting on Twitter
The Manecksters produced in this workshop are not justobjects, but can become communication tools on social media
when they are photographed and posted on Twitter with the
tag #Maneckster (#マネックスター in Japanese). To conclude
the workshop, participants went outside in the vicinity of
the National Art Center, Tokyo and took photos of the fired
Manecksters, which they posted on Twitter. ④
Through online communication using the Manecksters they
made, which had a variety of personalities, participants
seemed to enjoy an experience different from that of
replacing oneself with an avatar in an online game. ⑤••

lot of fun making my work. It was novel and interesting to haveus use social media to share our creations with the public, rather
than just making them and calling it a day. (Woman)I was not consciously trying to create my own avatar, but I
got deeply absorbed in the process of making it, and when I
compared it with other people’s works, I thought it actually was
somewhat like me. I think this was quite a profound workshop.
(Woman)Things did not always go smoothly when I was making my piece,
but I had a good time. At times I got hung up on things that
seemed like they could be done quickly, such as shaping anddesigning, but I think these processes must be great fun for thosein the business of making things.... I feel I was able to experiencea little of the pain and joy of creation that artists experience.
(Woman)Materials
oven-baked clay (2 colors), clay spatulas, thin strips of bamboo,
straws, etc.
Items brought by participants: Smartphones or tablets

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60

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Workshops 2020

Introduction
An online workshop for elementary and junior highschool students to produce parodic works was held with
Kotobuki Shiriagari, one of the artists featured in TimelessConversations 2020: Voices from Japanese Art of the Past andPresent , as instructor.
Participants were provided with visual data of Nearly 36
Somewhat Ridiculous Views , a series Shiriagari produced as aparody of Katsushika Hokusai’s Thirty-six Views of Mount Fuji .
The data was provided in advance, and participants madefurther modifications to the images to create “parodies of aparody.” During the workshop the participants and Shiriagari
discussed their works, which they had submitted in advance.
The workshop was live-streamed exclusively to those who
had made advance reservations.

ARTIST WORKSHOP

1●⑥

Kotobuki Shiriagari Online Workshop:
held in conjunction with Timeless Conversations
Fun with Hokusai! Program
2020: Voices from Japanese Art of the Past and Present• Date and time: August 15 (Sat.), 2020, 13:00 - 15:00 • Participants: 8 (participating), 74 (viewing live stream) Outline An online workshop was held to produce• Target: From elementary school (4th grade) through junior high school (3rd grade) students
original parody works by making further modifications(participating), Anyone (viewing live stream)
based on the series Nearly 36 Somewhat Ridiculous• Entry fee: Free • Place: Online (Streaming from: 3F Lecture Rooms A, B)
Views
by Manga artist Kotobuki Shiriagari.
Organized
by
The
Asahi
ShimbunandothersCooperation:
The
SumidaHokusaiMuseum••30 min.

2
15 min.

362

Instructor Profile

Program content and timing

●
①

●
②

●
③

●
④

55 min.

Participants join chatroom, instructions on
audiovisual operation provided
After checking that microphones and cameras were working
properly and explaining background settings and otheroperations, facilitators chatted with participants to break theice while waiting for the workshop to begin.

Introduction of instructor, explanation ofproject, viewing of works
At 13:30, Shiriagari appeared on the screen waving his hand,
and the workshop got underway. First, Shiriagari introduced
himself and talked about the series Nearly 36 Somewhat
Ridiculous Views , the basis of the workshop. Then, three of
Katsushika Hokusai’s Thirty-six Views of Mount Fuji and threeof the Nearly 36 Somewhat Ridiculous Views were displayedon the screen in sequence, participants searched for where
the paintings had been altered, and Shiriagari talked about
the creative ideas he used in coming up with parodies.

Manga artist

Kotobuki
Shiriagari
Kotobuki Shiriagari was born in Shizuoka in 1958. He began his
career in manga while working in the advertising department of
the Kirin Brewery Company. In 1985, he debuted as a manga artist
with the book Ereki na haru . Since then, he has published a wide
variety of manga ranging from his mainstay, gag manga, to sociallyconscious works such as Ano hi kara no manga , an anthology
dealing with the earthquake, tsunami and nuclear disaster of March
2011. He has also been expanding his activities into contemporary
art.
Facilitator:
Natsumi Yoshizawa (The National Art Center, Tokyo)

Summary
Kotobuki Shiriagari’s workshop was originally scheduled for March
2020, but was cancelled due to the worsening COVID-19 pandemic
and changed to an online program after the National Art Center,
Tokyo reopened in August of that year. This was the first online
workshop live-streamed from the NACT, but with the generous
support of the Asahi Shimbun Company, it went off without a hitch.
Though most of the participating children had no previous
experience with online programs, they showed no signs ofconfusion while operating their equipment, and listened intently to
Shiriagari’s words. Many innovative and entertaining parody works
emerged from this workshop, showing afresh the appeal of theworks of Katsushika Hokusai and Kotobuki Shiriagari, both of which
stimulate children’s imaginations and bring out their creativity. (NY)Materials provided
visual data of Kotobuki Shiriagari’s Nearly 36 Somewhat Ridiculous
Views

Participants’ presentation of their works
and feedback
Next, while looking at the works the participating children
had produced in advance, they presented the stories andideas they had thought of, and Shiriagari made comments.
Each one of the unique parody works had comical stories,
with some of the surprising developments including “getting
lost on the way from the earth to the sun,” “being abductedby a UFO during a picnic, and realizing I had left mychopsticks on the earth,” and “dropping my ETC [electronic
toll collection] card,” and all of the participants looked gazedinto their screens with intense interest. Shiriagari asked eachof them what they had focused on and how they came up
with the stories, praising them for their ideas, and at times
bursting into laughter. The “parodies of parodies” kept theconversation lively and the laughter never ceased. ①②③④⑤⑥●⑤

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Instructor Profile

Program content and timing

1

ARTIST WORKSHOP

15 min.

LectureThe workshop began with participants considering differences
between their own homes, which are designed for living, anda museum, which is designed for viewing works of art. By
reaffirming the objectives of design of homes as spaces forliving and of museums as public facilities, they learned theimportance of seismic base isolation to protect people andartworks from earthquakes. ①

NIHON SEKKEI, INC. employees

2
15 min.

●④

Secrets of the National Art Center, Tokyo—
How Are People and Artworks Protected from Earthquakes?
• Date and time: September 22 (Tue., national holiday), 2020,
11:00 - 13:00, 15:00 - 17:00• Participants: 55 (1st session: 27, 2nd session: 28)• Target: Elementary school students (3rd grade) and over
• Entry fee: Free • Place: Gallery 3B and elsewhereparticipants learned about seismic base isolation. It was an opportunity
to deepen people’s understanding of architectural techniques that they
had not noticed during previous visits to the National Art Center, Tokyo.

3

●
②

4
15 min.

●③

64

Next, participants divided into groups to visit places in the
National Art Center, Tokyo where the seismic base isolation
measures are in place. The seismic base isolation mechanisms
themselves are installed on the deepest underground levelof the building, so it is not possible to see them in person.
Instead, the tour included a visit to a groove and bridge
device (expansion joint) between the building and theground, which can easily be missed if not observed carefully,
and a full-scale cardboard model of seismic base isolation
mechanism. The NIHON SEKKEI employees who served as
guides explained that seismic base isolation mechanisms
do not prevent the building from shaking in the event of anearthquake, but rather allow the building to move slowly andgradually to lessen the earthquake’s impact. ②③

Outline With NIHON SEKKEI, INC. employees as instructors,

60 min.

●①

Observation of visible seismic baseisolation measures

Production of maquettes of seismic baseisolation mechanism and building
In this workshop it was not possible to experience the actual
functioning of the seismic base isolation mechanisms, so as
an alternative experience, participants made a model andvibrated it. The seismic base isolation mechanisms werereproduced by assembling wooden boards (2), paper cups(4), small plates (4), and ping pong balls (4), and the building
model was produced using balsa wood strips and styrene
boards. ④

Vibration experiment and observation
After the model was completed, it was shaken to observe andverify differences in vibration depending on whether or not
ping-pong balls were attached to the model of a seismic baseisolation mechanism. Placing a plastic bottle filled with wateron the building model as a weight made it possible to visuallyobserve the difference in vibration with and without a weighton it. Also, participants got used to sensing anti-vibration
reinforcement using styrene boards as building walls andplacing them between the columns of the building model.
Those who finished the vibration experiment early enjoyedproducing their own seismic base isolation house, making
people and furniture to place in the building model. ⑤

Yukiko Uchida, Yume Kanesaki, Hiraku Kobayakawa,
Risako Sekine, Yukiko Tojo, Yuki Hirohata, Koji Miyata,
Mizuki Murayasu, Hiromitsu Yamashita, Robert
DwiputraNIHON SEKKEI, INC.: One of Japan’s leading architectural design
firms, which collaborated with Kisho Kurokawa on the design of the
National Art Center, Tokyo. The firm has designed many museums,
with those designed in-house including The Museum of Art, Kochi;
Iwate Museum of Art; and Yamatane Museum of Art. Designs
in collaboration with other architects include The University Art
Museum, Tokyo University of the Arts; Nagasaki Prefectural Art
Museum; and Mitsui Memorial Museum. In addition to taking part inarchitectural tours held at the National Art Center, Tokyo since 2017,
NIHON SEKKEI is a corporate sponsor of the National Art Center,
Tokyo’s operations.

SummaryThis workshop, conducted after in-depth discussions with NIHONSEKKEI members, was the first face-to-face project held in a longtime amid the COVID-19 pandemic and the temporary closure of the
NACT. Knowledge gained from this workshop, in which participantslearned about the seismic base isolation that invisibly protects the
NACT, seems to have provided participants with an experience
unlike the ones usually had at art museums. In the future, we hopeto make Secrets of the National Art Center, Tokyo an ongoing series
that offers visitors ways to enjoy the Center other than viewing
exhibitions. (MS)Feedback from participants• I was intrigued by the theme, which is something the public••

isn’t usually aware of, and the actual building tour was very
interesting. I also enjoyed the workshop where we experienced
the seismic base isolation mechanism first-hand. (Adult)Replicating the seismic base isolation mechanism with pingpong balls made it very easy to understand. I easily grasped thefact that seismic base isolation mechanisms are made of threematerials (rubber, iron, and lead), and that each material plays adifferent role. (Adult)
I had only been able to get information about seismic baseisolation from books and the Internet, but here I was able toactually see it in action. I was excited to see with my own eyesthat water did not shake as much in the model with seismic baseisolation. (Child)

Materials
cutting mats, utility knives, scissors, glue guns, extension cords, glue
sticks, seismic base isolation maquette materials (MDF, paper cups,
ping-pong balls), architectural maquette materials (styrene board,balsa wood)●⑤

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Workshops 2021

Introduction
My Koinobori Now! is a paper kit made for a special hands-on
area of the venue during the 2018 exhibition Koinobori Now!
Installation by Reiko Sudo, Adrien Gardère and Seiichi Saito .
The kit can be used to make colorful koinobori (carp streamers
associated with Children’s Day) simply by assembling printed
paper strips and pasting them onto the base paper. After theexhibition closed, a workshop (Workshop 82) was held in
April 2019 and proved popular, and another workshop at the
NACT was planned for spring 2020 but did not happen due tothe COVID-19 pandemic.
In April 2021, after a two-year hiatus, three different My
Koinobori Now! events were planned: a workshop to be heldat the NACT, an online workshop, and live video streaming.
Unfortunately, due to the declaration of a state of emergency,
it was not possible to hold the workshop at the NACT, but theonline workshop was conducted as planned.
Kits (4 sheets of koinobori paper and 10 sheets each of
20 types of patterned paper) were sent to participants inadvance, and they were asked to prepare scissors and pensthemselves. ①

ARTIST WORKSHOP●③

My Koinobori Now! 2021 Online

1
10 min.

• Date and time: April 29 (Thu., national holiday), 2021, 11:00 - 12:30, 14:30 - 16:00• Participants: 20 groups 40 people (1st session: 8 groups 14 people, 2nd session: 12 groups 26 people)• Target: Anyone, all ages
• Entry fee: Free
• Place: Online (Streaming from: 4F, Conference Room 1, 2)

Outline An online workshop was held,allowing 20 groups of participants toparticipate from home in making paper
koinobori (carp streamers).

2
3
10 min.

●②

4
35 min.

5●④

66

The Section of Education &Public Programs NACT Staff
Summary
My Koinobori Now! 2021 was held only as an online workshop,
but it demonstrated the advantages of the online format, such as
people’s ability to join in even if they live far away, to participate
with small children, and to make things in the comfort of their own
homes. After an icebreaker in the form of a quiz using the patterned
paper, participants showed the progress of their work to family
members and siblings. The Zoom screen bubbled with a congenial
atmosphere one participant after another showed their uniquekoinobori, created while concentrating on ways of arranging andfolding the patterned paper. (NY)

Feedback from participants• All of us had a lot of fun making the koinobori. It was a novel

Participants join chatroom, confirmationthat microphones and cameras are working
Participants entered the Zoom meeting room, and took turns
checking that the microphones and cameras were working
and changed the names displayed before the workshop
began.

•

Staff self-introduction
After a self-introduction by the staff member acting as
instructor, the group opened the kits sent to them in advanceand checked its contents.

5 min.

●①

Instructor Profile

Program content and timing

Warming up
Before starting to make the koinobori, there was a warmup
using the 20 different types of patterned paper, whereparticipants chose one pattern that suited their mood thatday, and took a quiz in which they had to guess one specificpattern.

•experience to spend time and create something with peopleof various ages living in different places, who they would notnormally have contact with, and I’m sure it was great for thechildren as well. (Girl, 5, Boy, 2, Woman, 30s, participating as agroup)
I thought it would be difficult to keep my children focused,since they are still young, but I could really see they wereenjoying it, and they continued working intently even after theworkshop had ended! I was glad we were able to continue aslong as we wanted, which was only possible because it was an
online workshop we could take at home. (Girl, 5, Boy, 2, Parent/
guardian, participating as a group)I felt a little embarrassed because there were not many adults
participating on their own, but the project itself was one thatboth adults and children could enjoy at their own pace, and it
was a precious opportunity for me to see children’s unrestrained
creativity in the process of growing and developing. (Woman,
50s)

Materials provided
koinobori kit (paperboard, papers with various patterns), scissors,pens

Production
Now it was time to get to work. After cutting the base paper
along the lines of the frame, participants chose their favorite
patterned papers from among the 20 types and arranged
them on the base paper. After deciding on arrangements,
they peeled off the seal on the double-sided tape on the basepaper, pasted on the patterned paper, and finally drew oneyes to complete the process. ②

Presentation of completed My Koinobori
and taking of photographs
When the koinobori were complete, participants brought themclose to their cameras and showed them to one another. Eachparticipant enjoyed working at their own pace, with somemaking koinobori with different patterns one after another,while others concentrated on ways of folding the patterned
paper and spent considerable time. ③④⑤●⑤

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Workshops 2021

1

ARTIST WORKSHOP

5 min.

2
30 min.

3●②

Yuima Nakazato Fashion Program
Thinking About Fashion and the Future with Teens
Program held in conjunction with Fashion in Japan 1945-2020• Date and time: August 22 (Sun.), 2021, 14:00 - 16:00• Participants: 5 (participating), 55 (viewing live stream)
Outline Fashion designer Yuima Nakazato acted as instructor for an• Target: Junior high and high school students (participating), Anyone
interactive webinar on the present and future of fashion, which was(viewing live stream)followed by an online discussion with teenage participants.
Entry
fee:
Free
Place:
Online(Streaming
from:
4F,
Conference
Room
1)
•
•

●
①

●
③

20 min.

4
40 min.

5
10 min.

6
5 min.
●④

68

Instructor Profile

Program content and timing
Introduction of instructor and exhibition
The works of fashion designer Yuima Nakazato, who fuses
craftsmanship and technology to create clothing, wasfeatured as “fashion of the future” in the exhibition Fashion
in Japan 1945-2020.

Fashion Designer

Talk: “The Path to Becoming a Fashion
Designer”
Nakazato was the youngest Japanese graduate of the Fashion
Department Master’s Course of the Royal Academy of Fine
Arts Antwerp. He shared anecdotes from his journey fromdeciding to become a fashion designer to launching his
own brand, and spoke about his current efforts to create
sustainable clothing using artificial synthetic proteins.

Discussion
After Nakazato’s talk, junior high and high school students
asked a variety of questions such as “Is it true thatfashion repeats itself?” “Why is so many clothing thrown
away?” “How can I know what my own preferences are?”Nakazato responded to these frank questions in an easily
understandable manner, and the session offered opportunities
to think about how the fashion industry works and what itmeans to wear clothing. ①

Critique of design drawings
Junior high and high school students had been asked inadvance to submit their “fashion of the future” designs, andNakazato and Yayoi Motohashi, a researcher who workedon the Fashion in Japan 1945-2020 exhibition, conducteda critique of the designs. There was a wide range of design
drawings, including for apparel assembled from kimono,styles that can be worn in outer space, and materials thatincorporate environmental considerations. Nakazato gave
advice on making design drawings and showed some of
his own from his high school days, as well as his favorite
stationery supplies and materials. Motohashi also commented
from the perspective of Japanese fashion history and asked
the students questions, making it a valuable exchange forboth sides. ②③④

Q&A with viewers
In the Q&A with viewers during the webinar, there werenumerous questions such as “What is the most important
thing for a designer?” “How has the pandemic changed
fashion?” and “What do you think about the relationshipbetween art and fashion?” Participants shared theirperceptions of current issues in fashion. ⑤

Yuima Nakazato
Born in 1985, Yuima Nakazato graduated from the Royal Academyof Fine Arts Antwerp in 2008, before founding YUIMA NAKAZATO
Co., Ltd. in 2015. In 2016, Yuima was formally selected as a guest
designer for Haute Couture Week. Since then, he has continued
presenting his collections at Paris Fashion Week, offering his
trademark fusion of technology and craftsmanship. From 2021,
Yuima initiated the FASHION FRONTIER PROGRAM, an educational
project for ambitious, next-generation fashion designers. Yuima
seeks to address social issues while pursuing cutting-edge fashion
through his collections presented at Haute Couture Week.
Facilitator:
Mana Yamagiwa (The National Art Center, Tokyo)
Critique of design drawings:
Yayoi Motohashi (The National Art Center, Tokyo)

SummaryThis was the first time a webinar format was used in a workshop
for junior high and high school students. The instructor’s sincere
responses to the participants’ candid questions, his thoughtfulmoderation of the dialogue, and the expressions of discovery
and surprise on the faces of the students were impressive. There
were also comments from live-stream viewers to the effect thatthe program provided them with opportunities to reevaluate theirlifestyles and ways of thinking, and it was an enriching programin which people were able to learn together about relationships
between fashion and daily life. (MY)Feedback from participants• When I saw everyone’s design drawings, they were so unique,••••and it made me realize that fashion is truly an art form.
(Participant/Girl, 14)
I always dressed without thinking too much about it, but fromnow on I will pay more attention to fashion, including when I’mlooking at magazines. (Participant/Girl, 15)
I became interested in sustainable fashion items that will be
loved for a long time, and this was a valuable opportunity torenew my relationship with clothing. (Viewer)
The frank questions from high school students were fresh andentertaining. (Viewer)It gave me a chance to reevaluate not only fashion, but also my
own way of life and thought patterns. (Viewer)

Reflection
Finally, the participating junior high and high school students
and Nakazato shared their impressions of the workshop.
Comments from students included “I used to think ofdesigners as distant presence, but now I feel closer to them.”
Everyone had a strong sense that the cross-generational
dialogue had created new connections.

●⑤

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Workshops 2021

1

ARTIST WORKSHOP

10 min.

2
30 min.

3●①

Online session with PAN- PROJECTS:
On Human Activity and Objects• Date and time: November 5 (Fri.), 2021, 19:00 - 20:00 Program held in conjunction with PAN- PROJECTS: The Matter of Facts
November 12 (Fri.), 2021, 19:00 - 20:30
Outline An online session with architectural design studio• Participants: 10
PAN- PROJECTS was held, with the goal of thinking about and• Target: High school students and overdiscussing by-products of human activity.
Entry
fee:
Free
Place:
Online(Streaming
from:
4F,
Conference
Room
1)
•
•

10 min.

4
10 min.

1
60 min.

(1st day) Introduction of instructors andparticipants
The Matter of Facts , a work by architectural design practice
PAN- PROJECTS, was on display in the public area of the
National Art Center, Tokyo. Participants watched PANPROJECTS’ video commentary on their work in advance, andon the day, introduced themselves and talked about their own
interests and concerns.

Lecture by instructors
The Matter of Facts reframes “urban memory” using publicity
materials issued by public institutions and commercial
facilities in Tokyo, especially printed matter related to events
that were canceled or postponed due to the pandemic. PANPROJECTS talked about the context of the work’s production
and about its by-products. ①

Practicing searching for by-products
Like the printed materials used in The Matter of Facts , eachby-product that emerges from the activities of people andcities has its own story. Participants were asked to practiceidentifying by-products by searching for by-products in theirsurroundings and thinking about the meanings and stories
behind them.

Q&A with participantsParticipants asked questions about how to determine thescope of what are to be considered by-products. Focusing onelements generated “by human activities,” the instructors
explained with a range of examples.

Participants from all over the country reassembled after
finding a wide variety of by-products, including masks,
manholes, bus stops, electric wires, and contact lenses. The
participants were divided into two groups and presented thephotos of the by-products they had taken and their stories. ②
③④⑤

●
③

2

Architectural design studio

PAN- PROJECTS
Yuriko Yagi
Kazumasa Takada

PAN- PROJECTS is a collaborative architectural design practicebased in London, UK. It was established in 2017 by Yuriko Yagi andKazumasa Takada, and is primarily active in Europe. PAN- PROJECTS is
dedicated to design that celebrates cultural diversity, and endeavors
to promote it through its architectural practice. Major projects
include Paper Pavilion (Copenhagen, 2017) and The Playhouse(Tokyo 2020). The studio has received many awards including the
CHART Architecture 1st Prize (2017) and Young European Architects
honorable mention & selected exhibitor recognition at the Venice
Biennale (2021).

Summary
In light of the time difference between London, where the two
instructors live, and Japan, the online session was held on weekday
evenings in two consecutive weeks. Participants and instructors,
with diverse backgrounds, engaged in dialogues over familiar
objects, and it seemed to open up possibilities for new types ofworkshops open to a wide range of participants. It was impressive
to see how the participants were able to deepen dialogues withthemselves, as well as with others, as they endeavored to reinterpret
relationships among and narratives about people’s activities andobjects. (MY)Feedback from participants(2nd day) Group work

They then discussed the significance and properties of the
by-products they had found. By paying attention to objects
that normally go unnoticed, they were able to reconsider
relationships between their own lives, their memories, andcontemporary culture.

●②

Instructor Profile

Program content and timing• I had been feeling a sense of stagnation due to the pandemic,••

Sharing contents of each group’s discussion
As each group shared the contents of their discussions, theyrealized that examining by-products offers opportunities torethink everyday life from new perspectives.

Materials provided

20 min.

3
10 min.

●
④

70

●
⑥

and feeling constrained by the way I had been thinking until theage of 22. I learned new ways of looking at things through thisseminar by the two members of PAN- PROJECTS, and by sharing
the results of the practices they taught with others, I feel that I
was able to resolve some of these issues. (Man, 20s)
I learned that through a single by-product we can see howsociety is evolving, or has already evolved, depending onchanges in the object and our impressions of it. (Man, 20s)
By envisioning stories related to objects, I was able to summon
up memories that remained in the corner of my mind, and evenamid the bleak pandemic, I felt a sense of “spaciousness” and“elbow room” in my life, which made me happy. I feel that byparticipating in this workshop I have a drawn a little closer tothe kinds of answers I had in mind, and it gave me courage tomake a fresh start. (Man, 40s)

Sharing of instructors’ and participants’impressions

Items brought by participants: texts and photos related to byproducts in their vicinity

Some participants commented that “the session provided
valuable opportunities to notice objects and phenomena[they] hadn’t noticed before.” The two-day online session on
by-products, which connected London and various parts ofJapan, had a positive atmosphere that made people reluctant
to see it draw to a close. ⑥●⑤

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1

ARTIST WORKSHOP

15 min.

2●④

Verbal Imaging Museum Tour with Visually
Impaired People Program held in conjunction with Hideaki Anno Exhibition• Date and time: December 14, 2021 (Tue.), 14:00 - 16:00, 18:00 - 20:00• Participants: 31 (1st session: 15, 2nd session: 16)• Target: Anyone *Sign language interpretation available• Entry fee: 1,000 yen• Place: Special Exhibition Gallery 1E, 1F lobby

Outline A diverse group of people, including those with and without
disabilities, gathered to discuss how one experiences animation by verbally
expressing “what they could see,” “what they could not see,” and “theirimpressions and feelings” about the works in Hideaki Anno Exhibition.

3
75 min.

30 min.
●
①

●
②

●
③

●
⑤

Verbal Imaging
Museum Tour with
Visually Impaired
PeopleOpening greeting, introduction of
exhibition, explanation of workshop
procedure, introduction of staff
On a Tuesday, when the NACT was closed, two groups ofseven or eight people each sat in circles in the café space infront of Special Exhibition Gallery 1E, where Hideaki Anno
Exhibition was taking place. First, a researcher who worked on
the exhibition gave an outline of it, and then Kenta Hayashi
of the group Verbal Imaging Museum Tour with Visually
Impaired People explained the workshop. Hayashi showed
pieces of paper inscribed “what I see,” “what I don’t see,”and “what I don’t understand,” and encouraged participants
to appreciate the works through words and to share theirperspectives during the workshop. ①

Self-introductions
Within each group, participants introduced themselvesand discussed how they were connected to Hideaki Anno
Exhibition .

Kenta Hayashi
Masahiro Fujimoto
Hiroaki Eto
Mayu Nagao
The group, which began its activities in 2012, is composed of bothvisually impaired and visually unimpaired individuals. Around once amonth it holds art appreciation programs at museums and schools,
where people from various backgrounds to discuss “the act ofviewing,” regardless of whether they have a disability or not. Recent
significant activities include an appreciation program at the Tokyo
Photographic Art Museum, which has been ongoing since 2017, andthe Kikutabi Project: Yokohama Museum of Art Edition , producedwith theatrical actor Masahiro Oishi (Mamagoto, Nylon 100˚C)and others. Since 2020, the group has aimed to create forums foranyone to easily and safely discuss access to the arts and “the act ofviewing,” primarily through online viewing programs.

Summary

20 min.

472

Navigators

Program content and timing

Interactive appreciation and discussion of
the exhibition
Participants entered the gallery and appreciated the works
in two groups. The participants viewed three or so animatedfilms, character references and so on selected in advanceby the navigator. While appreciating the works, participants
deepened their understanding of what they saw, what they
didn’t see, and what they didn’t understand by verballycommunicating their ideas to one another. ②③④⑤

By discussing artworks while envisioning the presence of others withbodies different from their own, participants gained opportunities toreexamine their senses and sensibilities. The workshop made themrealize that even people who at first glance look similar to them
have different perspectives and experiences when appreciating
works of art. Since many of the works featured in the Hideaki Anno
Exhibition , which was the subject of this workshop, were popular
ones, discoveries emerged in terms of individuals’ relationship to
the the context of anime and differences between generations. (SI)

Feedback from participants• I was able to talk with a lot of different people, and I had a•

Review, questionnaire
The group shared their experiences and discoveries during
the appreciation of the exhibition. Apart from what theyfelt about each work, the participants shared their various
perspectives and experiences, which allowed them toreinterpret their shared experiences.

•

positive sense of internal tumult. I could also see and hear abouta variety of works. (Man, teens)To talk freely with people who have different backgrounds,
while appreciating a single work of art, was a novel experience.
I also made many discoveries about art appreciation, such as thedifficulty of discussing animation in words and the difference
between the impression I got when I closed my eyes and listened
to other people’s verbal expression of works and when I saw
them with my own eyes. (Woman, 40s, with disability)I was surprised at how differently people can perceive a single
work. (Woman, 40s)

Workshops 2021

73

EssayGoing Back and Forth Between “Straight” and “Hanging Out”

Reflections on the Workshop

Kenta Hayashi

Reiko Sudo

 Verbal Imaging Museum Tour with Visually Impaired People (2017, 2019, 2021)

 Koinobori Now! Workshop (2018)• We are bound by our attributes

From April 11 to May 28, 2018, at the National Art Center, Tokyo, we exhibited Koinobori Now! , which was an installation of

The “Verbal Imaging Museum Tour with Visually Impaired People” is a program that provides opportunities for those who

319 koinobori made of different textiles swimming in the air. In conjunction with the exhibition, we held the “Koinobori Now!

can see and those who cannot see, along with those with various attributes to talk about the “experience of looking” in theirWorkshop” for parents and children to participate in on April 29. I would like to describe a little about this workshop.

own way, using words to describe what they can see, what they cannot see, as well as what they do not understand about
artworks. The program is designed to encourage participants to encounter one another as “strangers” by chance.
For example, as is often the case, when a “sighted” person and a “blind” person are together at a museum, their roles

NUNO has organized countless workshops, both in Japan and abroad, indoors and outdoors, on a variety of themes,
including “Rust Dyeing,” a dying technique by transferring metal rust, “Chemical Lace,” a technique by sewing thread andcloth on water-soluble cloth and melting the base cloth, and “Burnout,” a dyeing technique to burn cellulose fiber with acid,may be automatically assumed, with the sighted person playing the role of “explainer” and the blind person playing the roleand so on. The target audience for the workshops is diverse, ranging from teachers at universities and other educationalof “listener.” Mr. Nakagawa, a staff member who is completely blind, says, “The more explanation I receive in a one-sided

institutions, researchers, and artists, to children, with a wide range of genders, ages, and nationalities.

way, the more constrained I feel as visually impaired.” Our relationships and roles are automatically defined by our attributes

As for this workshop held at the National Art Center, Tokyo, we decided on children as the main target and had themsuch as “visually impaired,” “sighted,” “male,” “female,” “other gender,” “parent,” and “child.” That is why we want thiscreate “miniature koinobori that can be placed on a tabletop” by utilizing fabrics that everyone touches every day. The

workshop to be a place where people of any attribute can meet as “strangers” and have a simple conversation, not in amaterials we used were left over from the production of the giant koinobori displayed at the museum. They included plant

support relationship, good friends, or family relationship. For this purpose, we are proposing two modes of narration at thefiber from soil, silk from silkworms, wool from sheep, rayon from pulp, nylon and polyester from petroleum. Dyeing andworkshop: “straight mode” and “hanging out mode.”

weaving techniques included weaving, dyeing, embroidery, and knitting. In addition to the variety of materials, there was• Combining both modes

created. All of them were leftover from the exhibition and were carefully ironed and cut one by one by all NUNO members.

“Straight mode” is a mode in which the purpose is clear, as in “explanation,” for example. The language used by the guides

While we were preparing the materials, Mr. Chuzou Tozawa, the owner of Hinoki Kougei, a furniture company specializing in

is important, and the roles of “explainer” and “listener” tend to be fixed. A situation like “providing visual information about

interior fittings and custom-made furniture for hotels and residences, prepared the bases for the table-top koinobori . All of thepictures to the visually impaired” is a straight mode. In contrast, “hanging out mode” is a haphazard mode in which thewoodworking experts at Mr. Tozawa’s company selected the type of wood and used their skills to create pedestals that looked

purpose of the narrative is ambiguous, like “small talk,” and the conversation tends to get sidetracked. Here, words that comelike works of art.

a diversity in color, pattern, and texture; more specifically 319 different kinds, which is as many as the number of koinobori

to mind without any specific purpose are important. Since the focus of the conversation changes rapidly, there is no one who

On the day of the workshop, six members of NUNO, with hundreds of beautiful pedestals delivered by Mr. Tozawa, andtakes the initiative. Therefore, roles in the conversation are not fixed. By combining the two modes, those who can see do notnearly 10,000 pieces of cut fabric, waited for the children to join. Since we had many participating children, our spirits were

have to always speak as those who can see, and those who cannot see do not always need to listen as someone who cannot

naturally lifted. As for the children, however, the workshop was their first experience. First, we explained, using images, that

see. That way, people can remain as “others” without being bound by fixed roles.

fabrics are made from either plants, animals, or petroleum, and then explained the procedures of making “table-top carp
streamers” out of these fabrics. By the time the explanation was over, the participants had already begun to select their• Rewriting the Context
At a workshop related to the Hideaki Anno Exhibition at the National Art Center, Tokyo, December 2021, people who often

favorite fabrics. Each participant freely combined fabrics of their choice, according to their own ideas, and began production.
The most popular pastime among children today is said to be computer games. Virtual games require the use of the brain

watch anime, people who have never seen anime, and people with different contexts of animation appreciated anime.

and fingers in processing predetermined rules. On the other hand, workshops using materials involve various discoveries in

A sighted participant explained in straight mode, “A K-car is running from right to left.” Responses from persons with visually

the process of creation, and the participants must think of ways to solve problems, and then work through them to reach

impairment included “What kind of place?” and “Does it have color?” There were also comments like, “The car is kind ofcompletion. The brain and fingers are activated to discover routes to completion, which are truly diverse and different for eachcute,” “Why did you say that?” and “Maybe I relate to the car because there are no humans depicted here.” They wereindividual. It must have been a fulfilling time for the participants.

random impressions in “hanging out mode.” Then, everyone started to reflect on a fundamental question brought up by no

Although this was the first time for us to conduct a workshop with so many children, we were able to conduct theone specific: why does the car seem to be moving? There were ideas like “Since the ground and smoke are moving to theworkshop smoothly without any problems and provided rich content. It was good that we were able to provide children,right, the car seems to run to the left.” and “When the car moves up and down, the car seems to be speeding.” There were

who are not used to visiting museums or workshops, with an opportunity to “create,” even though it was only for a day. If

people who experienced anime with their eyes and also those who experienced it in words and when they translated their

the children’s memories of the experience here remain with them, even if only a little, and if we were able to guide them toexperiences by means of verbal expressions, the venue transformed from a place to learn about anime from someone into aunknown workshops, they might participate in the future, we can say that this was a meaningful activity.

place to rewrite the context of anime with someone else. In order to be able to rewrite the contexts with someone else we
don’t really know, whether it is about animation, painting, photography, movies, or even context embedded in society, weneed a place where we can meet others safely.

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Sense of Wonder, and the Wonder of Being Enthralled

Shadow Merry-Go-Round

Hideo Ohsumi

Rintaro Hara Balance is Fun! Midsummer Free Study: Playing with the Wind (2018)

 Shadow Merry-Go-Round (2018)

In recent years, due to the revision of the Basic Act on Education, the time for arts and crafts in elementary and junior highThe starting point for my creative process is shadow-based expression. It began in 1995 when I made an interactive rotating

schools has been drastically reduced, with no end of the trend in sight. The same applies to high school art education.

lantern for a university festival, and continued thereafter. In 2008 there was the Shadow Festival , an exhibition in Taiwan

Compared to when I was in elementary and junior high school, the number of hours has been cut by almost half in somecomprised of workshops in which participants traced and painted shadows; for the 2015 Echigo-Tsumari Art Triennial , wegrades. I must wonder why the amount of time for something fun and really important has been reduced.

created 10 or so giant lanterns in the large hall of a traditional Japanese inn in the town of Tsunan, once a bustling place,

The arts and crafts program, which plays an important role in linking together the various subjects that are taught
separately into a single body of knowledge, is facing a crisis.

and produced Phantasmagoria , a fantastical installation with dozens of translucent screens that viewers could walk through(both 2015 works were by Yu Hara and me). Shadows are primitive cinema, and various artists have used “moving shadows”

For this reason, I have adopted the slogan, “Arts and Crafts for University Students!” at the university where I teach as

as a mode of expression: from the fantasmagorie of lantern shows popular in France in the late 18th century to the rotatinga lecturer. I want my students to hone their “Sense of wonder, their sensitivity to the mysterious and wondrous,” as Rachellanterns that were a popular summer custom in Japan during the Edo Period (1603-1868), and in contemporary art, of course

Carson put it, and to grow up with sensitivity acquired not through knowledge, but through experience.

there are the works of the French artist Christian Boltanski.

When I received this offer, I had just finished reading Shinichi Fukuoka’s book, Ruriboshikamikiri no Ao (The Blue ofThis workshop, Shadow Merry-Go-Round, was attended by parents and children, but surprisingly it was more of a struggle

Rosalia Batesi) . There is an episode from his boyhood in his book, where he went to the National Museum of Nature andfor the parents than for the kids. The children lay down on large white sheets of paper and posed freely. After the parents

Science to ask a question about an insect he had never seen before, a teacher at the museum treated him as a full-growntraced the child’s life-sized silhouettes with Magic Markers, the parents and children cooperated to cut them out with scissors,researcher, and that was one of the triggers that led him to pursue a career as a scientist. I think that is a wonderful thing.

make holes in the bodies, and apply colored cellophane. The usual parent-child relationship seemed to have been reversed,

I wanted as many children as possible to share this kind of experience, so although this workshop was designed for upper
elementary school students, I decided to use an actual material exercise for university students.

with small children in authority giving orders: “Mommy, make a hole here!” or “Put red cellophane on it!”That was the first stage, and in the second stage everyone’s silhouettes were suspended from four rotating machines andUsing stone, titanium, and aluminum, which are quite difficult materials to use, all the participants, acting as a single

spun at low speed. The gallery happened to be empty at the time, so we were able to create a huge shadow puppet show

artist, created a balancing toy (yajirobe ). First, a slide lecture like a university class was given to the participants. Then, as amore than five meters high. When the lights went out and huge spinning shadows appeared, there were exclamations ofwarm-up for the workshop, the participants tried stone balancing by piling up stones collected from the riverbank. There were

wonder and delight from all. Normally a human shadow is always attached to the body, but these detached, spinning alterstones of various kinds, such as smooth or rough surface, round, triangle, and so on, from which the participants found theiregos were separate selves, and the lively spinning figures seemed to emanate messages to the children: that their shadowsfavorite shapes, and piled them on top of each other, starting with two, then three, four, five, and so on. I, myself, had preparedwanted them to create a bright future.

in advance and demonstrated a pile of five in front of them, which received reactions like “Amazing!” and “How you can do

The Shadow Merry-Go-Round workshop was followed by the installations Chasing Shadows at Kawaguchi Art Gallery

it!” After that, everyone got very absorbed in it and they tried various ways to keep the pieces from collapsing, by balancing

ATLIA and Shadow Wonderland at Tokyo Shibuya Koen-dori Gallery. These workshops and exhibitions were in different formats

them. It was so much fun, and it got them all focused and excited at once.

from the one in Taiwan, and it was an important opportunity for me to open new doors in my own work.

This is where the real work begins. Using the stones used in the warm-up as weights for balancing, they made holes inthem, inserted bent and twisted aluminum wires into them, and glued or screwed them together.

To be honest, I had thought that for me as an artist who exhibits works, a workshop for children was just a supplementary
activity, but I believe this workshop was truly a collaboration between the artist and the participants, as the participants

Another challenge is something that even adults don’t get to experience very often.

did not simply create individual finished products but were able to bring their works together and expand them into an

The titanium plates we prepared were 0.5 mm thick and each disk had a diameter of 60 mm and 40 mm, and they colored

installation-like environment. And Shadow Merry-Go-Round created a time and space that manifested the world of “children

them using a method called anodic oxidation. Everyone put on goggles and soaked the titanium plates in an electrolytic
solution containing sulfuric acid, which is a bit dangerous, to pass electricity through them. Using slidac transformers equipped

and magic” explored by my favorite musician, Nobukazu Takemura.
In recent years, Yu Hara and I have been working to create many hands-on installations that are purely for the enjoyment

with earth leakage breakers, they could change the color of each plate like a rainbow by adjusting the applied voltage. Theyof children. It is difficult for our activities to be appreciated in the contemporary art world, where high art is given preferential

started with 10 volts and checked the color, and then moved onto 15 to 20 volts to see the color change. The participants hadtreatment, but art must be open to all. I believe that experiences with art at an early age have a positive influence on theto wait for their turns, and although it was a bit frustrating, they watched others work and contemplated how they would

future. The important thing is not to create art specifically for children, but rather art that children can enjoy. Also, to havecolor theirs. Through trial and error, the participants enjoyed coloring their plates, and completed the work by balancing the

primal experiences. People often say that artists are like children, but this means that at the same time, children are like artists.

beautiful titanium plates with stones and other materials.

We will continue to work with small artists to create various shared experiences.

In this workshop, parents and children were asked to create separate works of art, instead of one assisting the other, andat the end of the workshop, the children’s works were appreciated along with the works done by their fathers and mothers.
Everyone seemed satisfied with their own work, and there were some very nice smiles on their faces. Now, will this be the

Finally, and obviously, this workshop was only made possible by the meticulous preparation and smooth facilitation of the
NACT staff. Thanks to them, I can look back and laugh at how we overslept and were almost late on the day of the workshop,
but when we arrived at the venue just before the starting time we were able to get right into it.

birth story of a future artist? The workshop of good rivals is done!

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Making “Ambiguous Class Business Cards” Together
Sachiko Kazama
 Let’s Make “Ambiguous Class Business Cards”! (2019)

Listening Closely to an Art Center in Roppongi: Imagining Sounds,
Creating with Ears
Soichiro Mihara
 Listening Closely to an Art Center in Roppongi: Imagining Sounds, Creating with Ears (2019)

It was only two years ago, but it feels like the distant past... The time we all spent together at my workshop at the National Art

The theme of this workshop was sound, which, at the risk of sounding pompous, is the source of my career and the world inCenter, Tokyo, without wearing masks and making lots of noise, is a pleasant and heartwarming memory now that we’ve been

which I am immersed. I attempted to condense the history of the past century or so, in which sound has come to be applied

through so many waves of the pandemic that we’re losing count.

and appreciated in the visual arts. However, the workshop was intended to be for children. With no pretentious discussion, and

The Let’s Make “Ambiguous Class Business Cards”! workshop, based on my series Ambiguous Class Stamps , was held
on February 17, 2019. Since around that time, my life has become busier and busier, and while on the one hand I’ve been

based on a playful mindset, the program was designed so that craft-making would not only focus on visual aspects like colorand form, but also on the auditory sense.

delighted to win major awards and hold exhibitions of various sizes, I’ve truly been swamped with work. This inevitably means

First, as a game to build concentration on the sounds of the workshop site and the surrounding environment, I started

more time alone and less time interacting with others, which has only been exacerbated by the advisory to maintain physicalby introducing the concept of sound education advocated by the Canadian contemporary musician R. Murray Schafer. Afterdistance from others to avoid COVID-19 infection.

that I asked the participants, while introducing themselves, to describe one sound that they had noticed. While I deliberately

In elementary and junior high school I was one of those kids who refuses to go to school, and when I occasionally did go
I had trouble making friends, which led me to avoid active communication and feel more comfortable being alone.
So I was not bothered at all by staying home during the pandemic, and (although it may be inappropriate to say so) I evenavoided mentioning it at the time, I was quietly moved by the fact that several participants cited the sounds they were making
themselves, as this aligned with my goal of treating all sounds equally.
After that, we worked with our hands to create thick paper bugles as extensions of the ears, and used wood and screws

felt a sense of relief to be in a situation where people throughout the world were all staying home at the same time. Ambiguous

to make sound-generating devices that produced organic chirps. With both devices, one that promoted the transformation

Class Stamps is a work rooted in my observations of the self-consciousness and self-mockery peculiar to solitary people,of hearing and one that showed how inanimate objects acquire quasi-biological resonance, we left the quiet craft room andincluding reflections on my own individualistic nature, and also inspired by the way people label others’ social positions andwent outside.

characteristics in demeaning ways while also internalizing these labels and referring to themselves in similar ways.
These personal stamps are engraved with prewar class designations, contemporary online slang, or terms that are almost
discriminatory. For example, a few years ago the term NEET (not in education, employment, or training) became widely used

We enjoyed a “walk by ear,” recognizing the presence of wild birds in the small woods surrounding the NACT, andreturning to the Center to check the echoic resonance of an empty white-cube space itself.
Some people’s faces told me they did not know what to listen for or could not find it, but perhaps this is because we are

to describe unemployed and reclusive people. While the term is used contemptuously by non-NEETs, in some cases people use

not accustomed to freely listening to sounds other than those presented to us. If we strip away its meaning, pure sound is

it somewhat defiantly to described themselves, and it takes on the nuance of compelling those around them to be lenient andnothing but space and material.

stop trying to force them to do things. When you say “Hey man, I’m a NEET,” or “I’m a [fill-in-the-blank],” the self-deprecation
can actually earn acceptance from others and give you a sense of security.
Personally, I only recognized this when I became an artist. Perhaps because I was not exposed to large numbers of people

After we enjoyed the walk, I endeavored to share this fundamental nature of sound with the participants: it is vibration of
the air, and in principle, any sound in the world can be generated by pure superimpositions of waves, as described by Joseph
Fourier. With this in mind, we listened to pure artificial tones. This is a privilege of living in the age of digital media, wherein childhood, I am still not good at remembering people’s faces and names, but now that people know me as “Kazama thecomputers make it easy to listen to sine waves produced with an awareness of the audible range. Outside this range, wind,artist,” people I meet know my name and address me as “Kazama-san.” I am so grateful for this and deeply moved by whatperceived as subsonic, and ultrasound, used for sonar and certain types of communication, are also vibrations of the air. I

a wonderful thing a title can be, how it makes life so much easier. Who are we, and what sorts of people are we? We can startalso spoke about the senses of other species, such as dogs, which can hear things we can’t and can’t hear things we can. At

getting to know each other by exchanging a single business card, and if each person’s card had a bizarre title or appellation

any rate, it is not often that one hears the undulations of pure sine waves, from earth-shaking subsonic frequencies to thewritten in an unusual font, it would save us a lot of time in recognizing the identities of others and ourselves, wouldn’t it?

supersonic frequencies that bats use to communicate. I recall that all the participants’ eyes seemed to open wide in unison

Looking back on the time I spent with workshop participants creating Ambiguous Class Business Cards as nonsensicalcommunication tools, people analyzed themselves with unexpected severity, and took that as a starting point in seriouslywith a strange sense of elation.
Today, with the phenomena that generate the human senses and the mechanisms of perception scientifically understood,

considering the words and character styles that described them. An elementary school girl, young enough that I was worried

and methodologies for synthesizing any sound having been established, can the human imagination – primordially rooted

about whether she could safely use a utility knife, remarked that she lived in Meguro and made a charming personal stampin hearing – go even further? Is it up to specialists to play this role? I feel that this is the mission currently pursued bylabeling herself “Meguro Girl,” a play on stylish, sophisticated “Minato girls,” surprising the adult participants––one example

artists, acting as facilitators. What I shared in this workshop was merely the starting point for that journey. It was a preciousof how the workshop was so exciting because each participant unveiled their latent potential. (As I write this I am looking

experience for me to see, during this workshop, the expressions on people’s faces as they perceived the environment with ears

at photos of all the business cards taken after the completion of the workshop, remembering each episode and laughing torelieved of preconceptions.

myself.)
Now that wearing masks has become the norm, we face the challenge of reading facial expressions only through theeyes, but can we overcome this challenge in interesting ways, and if so how? I hope that everyone who participated in theworkshop two years ago will be able to apply the ideas they had then, and I hope that lively environments like that, where wecan chat and laugh while peering over people’s shoulders at what they’re doing, will return in the near future.

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NACT Staff (Retiree*)
NIHON SEKKEI, INC. and Canon Inc. have generously supported the Education &Public Programs of the NACT.

Shoko Imai
Masaya Sawada*
Masaaki Sugimoto
Takako Masumi
Mana Yamagiwa
Natsumi Yoshizawa
Nayuko Watanabe*InternAyaka Takenoshita (FY2015-FY2016)
Yui Morisaki (FY2015-FY2016)
Rika Takahashi (FY2016-FY2017)
Yūki Ura (FY2017-FY2018)
Ikuho Oiwa (FY2017-FY2018)
Kimihiko Nakamura (FY2018)
Kaho Hamano (FY2018)
Yurika Imaseki (FY2019)
Takumi Tsukada (FY2019)
Saki Hayashi (FY2019)
Mayu Iguchi (FY2020)
Madoka Ishii (FY2020)
Sora Suzuki (FY2021)
Nao Hayashi (FY2021)
Naoya Yoshioka (FY2021)

Art-tastic Adventure
The National Art Center, Tokyo Workshop Reports March, 2017 - December, 2021
Edited by

The Section of Education & Public Programs
Takako Masumi (Section Manager and Curator)
Natsumi Yoshizawa (Chief Educator)
Mana Yamagiwa (Educator)
Shoko Imai (Educator)
Masaaki Sugimoto (Staff)

Translated by Christopher Stephens, Takayoshi Watanabe
Designed by

Takenori Oshima (cover)
Design Office SPIKE (text)

Printed by

Noto Printing Corporation

Published by

The National Art Center, Tokyo
7-22-2 Roppongi, Minato-ku, Tokyo 106-8558 Japan

Published in Japan, March 31, 2023
© 2023 The National Art Center, Tokyo
ISBN 978-4-910253-08-4