PRESS RELEASE

2023.2.20

Museum of Contemporary Art Tokyo

MOT Collection:
Membrane of the Time / Breathing
Sat. 18 Mar – Sun. 18 Jun, 2023

The Museum of Contemporary Art Tokyo houses approximately 5,600 artworks in its extensive collection, whichspans the modern and contemporary periods with a focus on art of the postwar years. Each installment of the“MOT Collection” exhibition introduces artworks in the collection from various themes and angles in its effort
to convey the diverse appeal of contemporary art.
This exhibition is structured around two themes.
On the 1st floor, works from the end of the 1980s onward will be presented under the title, “Membrane of theTime." Starting with recently acquired works by MIKAMI Seiko produced in the early 1990s, we introduce adiverse selection of works that employ a wide variety of media, including painting, sculpture, installation,photography, and video. “Membrane,” mentioned in the title of this section, is one of the keywords that Mikami
had repeatedly used around the time in which she produced these works. A membrane is literally a thin layerthat is located between the inner and outer surfaces of something. While it protects what is contained within, italso serves to enshroud and conceal. The exhibition likens this “membrane” to various things such as the skincovering the surface of organisms, the ideas that shape individual consciousness and society, and therelationship with technology that expands the capabilities of the human body. As we reflect on the past thirty
years or so in which these works were created, we hope viewers will take this opportunity to enjoy engaging
with each artist’s endeavors while looking at the shifting sense of the corporeality and outlook on life that isobserved there.
Contact

Museum of Contemporary Art Tokyo
Public Relations
Kudo, Uchibori, Inaba
E-MAIL: mot-pr@mot-art.jp TEL: +81-3-5245-1134* All Programs are subject to change.

URL: https://www.mot-art-museum.jp/en1

The 3rd-floor section titled “Breathing,” consists of a group of works that evoke the flow of wind, water, and air
as it connects to people's breathing and circulates around the world. One of the things that has been strongly
restricted along with movement and travel over the past three years as we found ourselves amid the pandemic,
is the way in which we naturally share the air that we breathe. This awareness towards the very act of breathingthat is an all too familiar part of our everyday lives, has perhaps enabled us to reconsider our physical connection
to others and our surrounding environment. In this section, we invite viewers to open up their senses toexperience Sam FRANCIS’ large-scale paintings with their flowing colors and forms derived from the dynamic
and expansive use of his body, as well as works by Montien BOONMA, ENDO Toshikatsu, MATSUMOTO Yoko,and others.
*Please be informed that the contents of the exhibit may be subject to change.

Artists
ISHIHARA Tomoaki, IBA Yasuko, UMEZAWA Kazuki, ENDO Toshikatsu, OZAWA Tsuyoshi, KAIHATSU Yoshiaki, KATOMika, KANEUJI Teppei, CHIBA Masaya, NAWA Kohei, HAN Ishu, HIRAKAWA Noritoshi, FANG Lijun, FUKUDA Miran,HOMMA Takashi, MATSUMOTO Yoko, MIKAMI Seiko, MURASE Kyoko, MOMOSE Aya, Montien BOONMA, Thomas
DEMAND, Sam FRANCIS, SOPHEAP Pich and moreInformation
Exhibition Period:

Sat. 18 Mar – Sun. 18 Jun 2023

Closed:Mondays

Opening Hours:

10:00-18:00 (Tickets available until 30 minutes before closing.)

Admission:

Adults – 500 yen / University & College Students – 400 yen / High School Students,
Over 65 – 250 yen / Free for under Junior High School Students & Temporary
Exhibition tickets holders

Venue:

Museum of Contemporary Art Tokyo, Collection Gallery

Organized by:Tokyo Metropolitan Government, Museum of Contemporary Art Tokyo operated by
Tokyo Metropolitan Foundation for History and Culture

Curated by

OKAMURA Keiko, MIZUTA Yuko, CHINZEI Yoshimi, FUJII Aki (MOT)

Audience will also enjoy
Christian Dior: Designer of Dreams– Sun. 28 May, 2023

Waiting for the Wind : Tokyo Contemporary Art Award 2021-2023 Exhibition
Sat. 18 Mar – Sun. 18 Jun, 2023

Contact

Museum of Contemporary Art Tokyo
Public Relations
Kudo, Uchibori, Inaba
E-MAIL: mot-pr@mot-art.jp TEL: +81-3-5245-1134* All Programs are subject to change.

URL: https://www.mot-art-museum.jp/en2

To request press images, please contact our Public Relations team with thecaption number of the desired image.

Membrane of the Time

1 MIKAMI Seiko, World Membrane: Disposal Containers – Suitcases

2 ISHIHARA Tomoaki, Engagement, 1988

/ [Suitcase (Yellow)], 1992-93. Installation view from “SEIKO MIKAMI

Photo: Norihiro Ueno

“Suitcases 1993 | 2020””, at CAPSULE, Tokyo, 2020. [detail]Photo: Ichiro Mishima

3 HOMMA Takashi, TOKYO SUBURBIA:

4 IBA Yasuko, Untitled 2009-02,

Tama New Town, Tokyo, 1995-1998

2009

7 NAWA Kohei, PixCell-Deer #17, 2009
Photo: Nobutada OMOTE | Sandwich

5 CHIBA Masaya, Turtle’s Life #3, 2013

6 KANEUJI Teppei, White Discharge (Built-up objects) #4, 2009
Photo: Eiji Ina

Contact

Museum of Contemporary Art Tokyo
Public Relations
Kudo, Uchibori, Inaba
E-MAIL: mot-pr@mot-art.jp TEL: +81-3-5245-1134* All Programs are subject to change.

URL: https://www.mot-art-museum.jp/en3

8 MOMOSE Aya, To Cuddle a Goat, a Poor Grammar Exercise, 2016

9 HAN Ishu, return, 2011

Breathing

10 Sam FRANCIS, Untitled (SFP85-95), 1985, Deposited (Collection of ASAHI BREWERIES, LTD.)

11 MATSUMOTO Yoko, Night, 1991

12 SOPHEAP Pich,

13 ENDO Toshikatsu, Fountain, 1991 Photo: Shizune Shiigi

Moonstone, 2017

Contact

Museum of Contemporary Art Tokyo
Public Relations
Kudo, Uchibori, Inaba
E-MAIL: mot-pr@mot-art.jp TEL: +81-3-5245-1134* All Programs are subject to change.

URL: https://www.mot-art-museum.jp/en4