CHIM↑ POM: HAPPY SPRING

Press Release vol.1

JANUARY 14, 2022

CHIM↑POM: HAPPY SPRINGFEBRUARY 18 [FRI] - MAY 29 [SUN], 2022 MORI ART MUSEUM (53F, ROPPONGI HILLS MORI TOWER) ET AL.

CELEBRATING JAPAN'S MOST RADICAL ARTIST COLLECTIVE IN THEIRLARGEST RETROSPECTIVE
The Mori Art Museum, Tokyo, is pleased to announce Chim ↑ Pom: Happy Spring to be on view from
Friday, February 18, to Sunday, May 29, 2022.
Equipped with highly original ideas and impressive energy, artist collective Chim ↑ Pom has undertaken
numerous projects intervening in society in ways that constantly confound our expectations. With themes
ranging from cities and consumerism to gluttony and poverty, Japanese society, the atomic bomb,
earthquakes, images of stardom, the mass media, borders, and the nature of publicness, their works serveas powerful statements on a plethora of phenomena and challenges in modern society, delivered mostly
with a healthy dose of humor or irony.
With seemingly uncanny foresight, Chim ↑ Pom has also addressed in a number of their previous works
the social issues of infection and discrimination against people with contagious diseases, and of bias,
contamination and borders, all thrown into sharp relief by the COVID-19 pandemic. Now more than ever
perhaps is the time to observe their thought-provoking knack for raising issues pertinent to the zeitgeist .
This will be the first-ever retrospective of Chim ↑ Pom, bringing together major works from the startof their seventeen-year career to more recent years, plus new work produced for this exhibition. Artworks
will be arranged by theme - e.g., cities and publicness, Hiroshima, the Great East Japan Earthquake highlighting matters consistently addressed by the artists, while examining the collective’s oeuvre in its
entirety. Dynamic exhibition design, rich in creative ingenuity, will also assist in shedding new light on theever-surprising world of Chim ↑ Pom.
The title Happy Spring signals Chim ↑ Pom’s hope for a brighter spring even amid this seemingly neverending pandemic, and that we retain our powers of imagination even if that long-awaited season arrives
in the depths of adversity. In these unpredictable times, the powerful, convention-busting works of thisenduring, but equally-unpredictable group of artists are certain to excite the imagination, and serve as a
guide as we join in contemplating a better future.

Build-Burger
2018
Mixed media (3 layers of concrete ﬂoors cropped from “ Ningen Restaurant, ”various furniture and objects from each ﬂoor of the building)
400 x 360 x 280 cm (left), 186 x 170 x 155 cm (right)
In cooperation with Ningen Restaurant, Smappa! Group, Koto Hiroya
Private collection (left)
Courtesy: ANOMALY, Tokyo
Installation view: Grand Open – Marvelous Liberation – , ANOMALY, Tokyo,
2018
Photo: Morita Kenjipress release

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Press Contact Details: Machino Kayo (Ms.)
Public Relations, Mori Art Museum Tel: +81-(0)3-6406-6111 Fax: +81-(0)3-6406-9351
E-mail: pr@mori.art.museum Web: www.mori.art.museum/en

CHIM↑ POM: HAPPY SPRING

Press Release vol.1

JANUARY 14, 2022

BIOGRAPHY
Formed 2005 in Tokyo, artist collective Chim ↑ Pom (members are: Ushiro Ryuta, Hayashi Yasutaka, Ellie, Okada Masataka, Inaoka
Motomu, and Mizuno Toshinori) has taken part in exhibitions across the globe, in addition to designing and implementing various
projects of their own. In 2015 they opened the artist-run space “ Garter ” in Koenji, Tokyo. They also conceived the idea for Don’t
Follow the Wind (March 11, 2015-), an international exhibition in the Fukushima exclusion zone that “ no one can actually go see ” until
the ban on return is lifted, launched the project off the ground, and participated as artists. Also in 2015, Chim ↑ Pom won the Best
Emerging Artist Award at the Prudential Eye Awards. Their solo exhibitions in recent years include: So See You Again Tomorrow, Too? (The
Kabuki-cho Shopping Center Promotion Union Building, Tokyo, 2016); Non-Burnable (Dallas Contemporary, TX, 2017); and Threat ofPeace (Hiroshima!!!!!!) (Art in General, New York, 2019), while their group exhibitions include: 29th São Paulo Biennial (2010); Asian
Art Biennial 2017 (National Taiwan Museum of Fine Arts, Taichung); Global(e) Resistance (Centre Pompidou, Paris, 2020), HERE AND
NOW at Museum Ludwig: together for and against it (Cologne, 2021-2022) and more.

Photo: Yamaguchi Seiha

General Information
Exhibition Title: Chim ↑ Pom: Happy Spring
Organizer: Mori Art Museum
Curated by: Kondo Kenichi (Senior Curator, Mori Art Museum)
Exhibition Period: February 18 [Fri] – May 29 [Sun], 2022
Venue: Mori Art Museum (53F, Roppongi Hills Mori Tower, 6-10-1 Roppongi, Minato-ku, Tokyo) et al.
Hours: 10:00-22:00 | Tue: 10:00-17:00* Admission until 30 minutes before closing. | * Open every day. | * Open until 22:00 on Tuesday, May 3, 2022.
* See the Mori Art Museum website for our countermeasures against COVID-19.
https://art-view.roppongihills.com/en/info/countermeasures/index.html

Admission:［ Weekdays ］

OnlineOn-SiteOnlineAdults¥ 1,800¥ 1,600¥ 2,000¥ 1,800

Students (University/High School)¥ 1,200¥ 1,100¥ 1,300¥ 1,200

Children (Age 4 through Junior High School)

¥ 600

¥ 500

¥ 700

¥ 600

Seniors (Ages 65 and over)¥ 1,500¥ 1,300¥ 1,700¥ 1,500

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On-SitePress Contact Details: Machino Kayo (Ms.)
Public Relations, Mori Art Museum Tel: +81-(0)3-6406-6111 Fax: +81-(0)3-6406-9351
E-mail: pr@mori.art.museum Web: www.mori.art.museum/en

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JANUARY 14, 2022

* It is encouraged to make advance booking for a designated date/time slot and purchase the admission ticket on the booking website.
The date on which advance bookings for the exhibition starts will be announced on the Mori Art Museum website at a later date.
www.mori.art.museum/en* Admissions without advance bookings will be allowed so far as the time slots have not ﬁlled up on the day of your visit.
* All prices include tax.
* Ticket also valid for admission into the following Mori Art Museum small programs to run concurrently:
MAM Collection 014: Gravity and Inversion, Microcosmos and Macrocosmos - Tateishi Tiger, Yin Xiuzhen, Iwasaki Takahiro and Kaneuji
Teppei ; MAM Screen 015: Lu Yang; and MAM Research 008: Suddenly Turning Visible - Art and Architecture in Southeast Asia (1969-1989).
* Admissions to Tokyo City View, Sky Deck and Mori Arts Center Gallery are separate.

General Inquiries: 050-5541-8600 (Hello Dial, within Japan) / +81-(0)47-316-2772 (Hello Dial, from overseas)www.mori.art.museum/en

BLACK OF DEATH
2008
Lambda print, video
81 x 117.5 cm (photo), 9 min. 13 sec. (video)
Courtesy: ANOMALY and MUJIN-TO Production, Tokyo“ A Drunk Pandemic ”

2019-2020
Private collection
Commissioned and produced by Manchester International Festival and Contact,
2019
Curated by Contact Young Curators
Courtesy: ANOMALY and MUJIN-TO Production, Tokyo
Photo: Michael Pollard

EXHIBITION HIGHLIGHTS
Everything from Earliest to High-Proﬁle and New Works in a Single,
Comprehensive Retrospective
Chim ↑ Pom: Happy Spring will bring together a large selection of the extraordinary sextet’s best-known
work, from early classic “ Thank You Celeb Project I ’m BOKAN ” ( 2007 ) to the A-bomb-themed Making
the Sky of Hiroshima “ PIKA! ” ( 2009 ) and LEVEL 7 feat. “ Myth of Tomorrow ” ( 2011 ) ; numerous larger
works such as the “ Build-Burger ” series (2016/2018); small, humorous pieces, and an array of immersive/
experiential works, in what will be the world’s first comprehensive retrospective exhibition of work by theinternationally renowned Chim ↑ Pom.

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Press Contact Details: Machino Kayo (Ms.)
Public Relations, Mori Art Museum Tel: +81-(0)3-6406-6111 Fax: +81-(0)3-6406-9351
E-mail: pr@mori.art.museum Web: www.mori.art.museum/en

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The Exhibition Personally Designed by the Artists to Astound and Delight!
This will be distinctly different to the usual, chronologically-arranged retrospective. Works will be exhibitedby themes such as cities and publicness, the physical body, and borders, and multiple viewing routes provided
to encourage diverse readings of the exhibition. Visitors will also find themselves plunged into some dynamic
exhibition spaces, including one with asphalt, and an entire gallery composed into a single giant installation
featuring multiple works. A fascinating lineup of events and actions is also planned on site for the durationof the exhibition.

Two Newly-Commissioned Works, Including an On-Site Nursery
The exhibition will include a new video installation conceived around the event of Ellie giving birth in 2020.
A nursery (daycare center) will also be set up at the exhibition, in a new art project “Crying Museum” inspiredby the child-raising challenges of Chim ↑ Pom’s generation. The idea is to enable more people to view theexhibition, while simultaneously raising awareness of difﬁculties for young families in Japan.

Joining Visitors to Ponder the Concept of “ Publicness ”
Not long ago, Chim ↑ Pom built a private road in the grounds of their studio on private land, allowing anyone
to pass through. In Taiwan, they created a long street passing through the interior and outdoor spaces of anart museum, and formulated a set of original rules to apply there. By this use of the “street” as a theme, theyurge us to turn our thoughts to matters of “publicness,” and “the public and individual.”

Revisiting Debates and Dialogues around Works by Chim ↑ Pom
Some of Chim ↑ Pom ’s past projects have ignited debate, those on Hiroshima and the Great East Japan
Earthquake proving particularly controversial. This exhibition will revisit such controversies, examining themfrom multiple viewpoints and presenting not only the works themselves but timelines and related material, andsetting out the arguments for and against the works.

Things Revealed 10 Years on from the 2011 Quake, and Now amid a Pandemic
Ever since the 2011 Great East Japan Earthquake, Japanese artists have been working more than ever to help
build a better society, and Chim ↑ Pom is no exception, undertaking multiple projects after the disaster. Now,
ten years on, they will revisit these projects.
It so happens that a number of Chim ↑ Pom’s projects of the past decade, such as the “border”-themed
project carried out on the Mexico-US border in 2016-2017, and their large-scale participatory project at the2019 Manchester International Festival, which dealt with the historical connection between a 19th-century
cholera epidemic in the city, and beer, unintentionally deal with social issues highlighted by the COVID-19
pandemic. Chim ↑ Pom also continues their sharp observations on the state of Japanese society, for example,
in a new work set in Tokyo during 2020’s State of Emergency. Chim ↑ Pom: Happy Spring is designed toprovide a platform for discussing these and other Chim ↑ Pom activities, with reference to the current social
climate.
The latest exhibition press images are available on our website for downloads:
https://press.mori.art.museum/en/press-img/
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Press Contact Details: Machino Kayo (Ms.)
Public Relations, Mori Art Museum Tel: +81-(0)3-6406-6111 Fax: +81-(0)3-6406-9351
E-mail: pr@mori.art.museum Web: www.mori.art.museum/en

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JANUARY 14, 2022

EXHIBITION THEMES

1. CITIES AND PUBLICNESS
Chim ↑ Pom has favored urban settings for many of their projects
right from the beginning. In Gold Experience (2012), for example,
they turned a garbage bag into a gigantic, fun piece of sculpture.
More recently, their focus on cities has developed further toencompass discussions of urban theory and commonality /publicness, including in the “Scrap & Build” projects (2016-2017),
Street (2017-2018), and “ A Drunk Pandemic ” (2019-2020).

2. THE PHYSICAL BODY
Physical expression is fundamental to Chim ↑ Pom, and has beenfrom the collective ’s early days, when they took to the streets
armed with nothing more than themselves and a video camera.
Advances in CG technology mean that now they could probably
produce works without actually using their bodies, but for themembers of Chim ↑ Pom, the body itself remains central to artistic
expression, even if that means tattooing their flesh, fasting, or
repeated vomiting. It is this very realness that has the power toastound.

Street2017-2018 On-site installation
Dimensions variable
Courtesy: ANOMALY and MUJIN-TO Production, Tokyo
Installation view: Asian Art Biennial 2017, National Taiwan Museumof Fine Arts, Taichung, 2017-2018
Photo: Maeda Yuki

KOKKURISAN TATTOO
2008
Lambda print
83 x 52 cm
Courtesy: ANOMALY andMUJIN-TO Production,
Tokyo

3. BORDERS
Since 2014, Chim ↑ Pom has been engaged in “ The other side ”
series dealing with the problem of America ’s southern border.
The title is taken from the name commonly used for the US bythose living on the Mexican side. The Chim ↑ Pom team also
conceived the idea for Don’t Follow the Wind (March 11, 2015-), aninternational exhibition in the Fukushima exclusion zone that “ noone can actually go see ” until the ban on return is lifted, and has
been participating as artists themselves. “ Borders ” is one of thethemes that Chim ↑ Pom has tackled consistently throughout theyears, and one perhaps even more important than ever in thesepandemic days of lockdowns and restricted mobility.

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U.S.A. Visitor Center (from the project “ The other side ” )2017
Giclee print
66 x 100 cm
Courtesy: ANOMALY and MUJIN-TO Production, Tokyo
Photo: Matsuda Osamu

Press Contact Details: Machino Kayo (Ms.)
Public Relations, Mori Art Museum Tel: +81-(0)3-6406-6111 Fax: +81-(0)3-6406-9351
E-mail: pr@mori.art.museum Web: www.mori.art.museum/en

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4. HIROSHIMA
Making the Sky of Hiroshima “ PIKA! ” (2009) is a work that captures
the moment in 2008 when the artists chartered a skywriting plane
to write the word “ Pika ” (evoking the flash of the bomb) above the
A-Bomb Dome in Hiroshima. The artists’ intention was to rendervisually, and in comic-book style, the growing indifference to thepeace on which contemporary Japanese society is founded, butwhen misunderstanding and speculation were added to the mix,
the result was controversy. Having apologized to A-bomb survivors,
their families and supporters for not giving sufﬁcient advance noticeof the stunt, Chim ↑ Pom has subsequently continued to converse
and occasionally collaborate with them and the wider Hiroshimacommunity on a number of projects. Subsequent Hiroshima-themed
works include Pavilion ( 2013- ) and Non-Burnable ( 2017 ) bothfeaturing origami paper cranes, plus the still-burning flame from thebomb in We Don't Know God (2018).

Making the Sky of Hiroshima “ PIKA! ”
2009
Lambda print, video
66.7 x 100 cm (photo), 5 min. 35 sec. (video)
Courtesy: ANOMALY and MUJIN-TO Production, Tokyo
Photo: Cactus Nakao

5. THE GREAT EAST JAPAN EARTHQUAKEIn the immediate wake of 2011 ’s devastating Great East Japan
Earthquake, Chim ↑ Pom undertook a number of projects related
to the quake, tsunami, and subsequent nuclear power plant
accident. Starting with Never Give Up ( 2011 ) , this period saw
the emergence of some of their best-known works such as
REAL TIMES ( 2011 ) and KI-AI 100 ( 2011 ) , while in LEVEL 7
feat. “ Myth of Tomorrow ” ( 2011 ) they added, guerilla-fashion,a picture showing the accident at the Fukushima Daiichi Power
Plant, in a blank space at the lower right of Okamoto Taro’s Mythof Tomorrow mural in Shibuya Station. An ongoing project in
the quake exclusion zone, among other quake-related ventures,indicates that a decade on the disaster remains an important
theme for Chim ↑ Pom.

LEVEL 7 feat. “ Myth of Tomorrow ”
2011
Acrylic on paper, PVC panel, video, and others
84 x 200 cm (painting), 6 min. 35 sec. (video)
Collection: The Taro Okamoto Memorial Museum, Tokyo
Courtesy: ANOMALY and MUJIN-TO Production, Tokyo

6. MAY, 2020, TOKYO
Chim ↑ Pom installed billboards painted with cyanotype sensitizer
in various locations around the capital for a project undertaken
in May 2020, during Japan ’s COVID-19 State of Emergency.
The texts “ Tokyo 2020 ” and “ Atarashii Seikatsu-Youshiki ( Newnormal) ” on these were designed to be unexposed, and left white.
Incorporating sun, shadow, wind and rain, these works could be
described as the open air and time, etched in blue, of streets
almost deserted during the state of emergency, when people were
urged to “ stay at home. ” With deceptive simplicity, these works
express the bizarre reality of Tokyo whose blueprint for a bright
future was now lost.

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May, 2020, Tokyo (Hey-rasshai) - Drawing a Blueprint 2020 Cyanotype print, gelatin, canvas, iron frame
175.5 x 352.3 x 4.5 cm
Takahashi Ryutaro Collection, Tokyo
Courtesy: ANOMALY and MUJIN-TO Production, Tokyo
Production view: Shinjuku, Tokyo

Press Contact Details: Machino Kayo (Ms.)
Public Relations, Mori Art Museum Tel: +81-(0)3-6406-6111 Fax: +81-(0)3-6406-9351
E-mail: pr@mori.art.museum Web: www.mori.art.museum/en

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7. ELLIE
Through her actions over the years, including a Cambodian mineclearing and fundraising project with a theme of charity andcelebrity culture; and applying to city authorities for permission
to stage a demonstration, then staging a wedding parade forherself through the streets in a social scrutinizing of the marriage
system, Chim ↑ Pom member Ellie has consistently offered new
perspectives on some of the world ’s most deep-rooted social
issues. From occasional appearances in the mass media, where she
is viewed as a pop icon, to authorship of high-brow articles for aliterary magazine, and everything in between, Ellie ’s activities, andindeed the very nature of her presence, defy categorization. At ﬁrst
glance she may also seem to serve as the face of Chim ↑ Pom, but
in this show we examine the many aspects of Ellie that do not fit
neatly into conventional gender norms, feminist discourse, or theusual image of an artist.

SPEECH (from the project “ Thank You Celeb Project I ’ m BOKAN ” )
2007
Video
1 min. 53 sec.
Courtesy: ANOMALY and MUJIN-TO Production, Tokyo
Production view: Shinjuku, Tokyo* Notes on the individual works are to be uploaded to the Mori Art Museum website at a later date.
www.mori.art.museum/en

RELATED INFORMATION
Crowdfunding for New Art Project “ Crying Museum ” :The Original Coloring Book Named a Hot Reward, with a Coloring Contest Also Scheduled
For the new art project entitled “ Crying Museum ” where Chim ↑ Pom
opens a nursery (daycare center) at the exhibition, there is going to
be a crowdfunding carried out for the purpose of raising funds for its
operation. This new art project was essentially inspired by the social
circumstances of Japan today where it is difficult for the child-rearing
generation to casually visit museums, but how many days it can be
operated in fact will depend on your support. The target amount is
4 million yen with a stretch goal set. There are six different support “ Crying Museum ” illustration/referential image
amounts: from 1,000 yen to 330,000 yen (tax included), and there will be various rewards. The most notable reward willbe the Original Coloring Book by Chim ↑ Pom (common reward across the board). With the provided Coloring Book data,
you will be able to not only color as you like, but also apply for the “Coloring Contest” scheduled as a project-related
event. Aside from the members of Chim ↑ Pom, Aida Makoto, Higashimura Akiko and Kawamura Kosuke will be the judges
to decide the winners.
Crowdfunding Campaign Period: 0:00, Saturday, January 15, 2022 - 23:59, Monday, March 31, 2022
Details: See the MOTION GALLERY web page * Japanese-language only
https://motion-gallery.net/projects/moriartmuseum_chimpom_2022
Inquiries about the Crowdfunding: happyspring@mori.art.museum (E-mail)press release

7 /7Press Contact Details: Machino Kayo (Ms.)
Public Relations, Mori Art Museum Tel: +81-(0)3-6406-6111 Fax: +81-(0)3-6406-9351
E-mail: pr@mori.art.museum Web: www.mori.art.museum/en