There are many ways of enjoying museum visits - finding oneself moved by a photo-perfect landscape, laughing at the simplified figures of a portrait painting, wondering if you could pull off one of those haphazardly drawn abstract works... This exhibition tries to make art accessible to all from a variety of standpoints, aimed at both kids and adults. This is a prime opportunity to get acquainted with the Yokosuka Museum of Art's collection while having fun at the same time. Various guided programs, workshops and even an art appreciation worksheet have been prepared for visitors, all designed to encourage as much participation and attendance as possible, especially from those who might feel museum to not be a child-friendly destination, who have never been to a museum, or who want a slightly different spin on museum-going in general. [Image: Kyuzaburo Ito, "By the Window", 1931]

The animated film "Tekkon Kinkreet" (adapted from the original work by Taiyo Matsumoto) was released in theaters in the winter of 2006, receiving much acclaim from viewers. The movie won the best animation prize in the 31st Japan Academy Awards. This exhibition presents original illustrations and sketches created for the production of the film. Editor's comments and notes along with the drawings show how the film was created. Enjoy the never-before-seen creation of "Tekkon" through these original illustrations. [Image: (c) Taiyo Matsumoto/ Shogakukan, Aniplex, Asmik Ace, Beyond C., Dentsu, Tokyo MX]

This year marks the 30th anniversary of Reiji Matsumoto's manga "Galaxy Express 999". The manga was made into a TV series of 113 episodes, and three feature-length films. This exhibition introduces those animation works through displays of dioramas, CG animation screenings, and still images and materials used for the creation of the anime. The museum also presents a 3DCG animation in addition to the movie versions of the Galaxy Express 999, followed by a 3DCG workshop. The workshop can be part of children's summer vacation research project! [Image: (c) Reiji Matsumoto, Toei Animation]

BorneLund is a marketer of build-and-play toys for children. This summer, Hakone Open Air Museum and BorneLund collaborate to create an environment where children can experience "art" and "play" at the same time. A play ground where kids can run around and have fun is waiting for everyone! Location: Multi Hall

-Open Studio "Kinetic Art and Craft" July 19th - August 31st 3F Zokei Studio This workshop introduces how things move and how they work. Let's make a moving object! -Jungle Camera July 19th - August 8th 10F Computer Room What kinds of animals live in jungles? Using computer, make your own dream jungle with various animals and trees! -Magic Picture August 9th - 31st 10F Computer Room Let's play with computer graphic techniques to create magical pictures! -Mysterious Video Experimentation Lab August 12th - 20th, 22nd - 31st 4F A Studio An exhibition of toys which explain the function of motion pictures and an animation workshop using two illustrations. 11:00-17:00 -Eco Art Exhibition July 19th - August 31st 1F Gallery Artist Hiroshi Fuji and package craft artist Kazuma Takahashi's exhibition of recycle art and workshop. (July 19th - August 3rd "Making Flowers", August 4th - 31st "Making Clothes") More information on these events and other programs can be found on their website.

What is "printing"? Follow this enjoyable way to learn about the world of printing for parents and children alike. After learning about the history of printing through a quiz format as well as the all-familiar modern printing process, try your hand at some typographical printing! You can print your name on a sheet of paper to be used as the front cover of the book after answering the quiz on the worksheet. Fold the worksheet, and bind it with the front cover to create your own book. We would be delighted to welcome the whole family. *Worksheets are only available in Japanese.

The Setagaya Art Museum conducts art appreciation workshops for students of the elementary and junior high schools of Setagaya. The volunteers who have acted as guides in this program will choose artworks that children like from the museum collection, based on ten years of experience. This selection includes the paintings of Henri Rousseau and Camille Bombois. There is also a special display of work by Kitaoji Rosanjin.

Trace Elements: Spirit and Memory in Japanese and Australian Photomedia features work by Australian artists Philip Brophy, Jane Burton, Alex Davies, Genevieve Grieves and Sophie Kahn together with Japanese practitioners Teiji Furuhashi, Seiichi Furuya, Chie Matsui, Lieko Shiga and Kazuna Taguchi. An exhibition that encompasses both the traditions and the innovations of photomedia practice, from black and white photography to interactive video installation, Trace Elements considers the ways in which contemporary artists are addressing the intrinsic relationship of photography to time, memory and the metaphysical association of the medium to phantasmagoria and the semblance of lived experience. Relating Programmes Open Forum "Part Past Part Present Part Fiction: Trace Elements" July 19th (Sat) 14:00-17:00 Conference Room (1 and 2) on the 7th floor in Tokyo Opera City bldg. Capacity: 180 seats Language: Japanese and English with successive translation. Admission: Free Please check out the museum's website for more information and other related events.

The special exhibition for 2008 involves a compact selection of work from the world's largest art museum, the Louvre, which will be displayed at the Ghibli Museum under the theme "Little Louvre Museum". The Louvre is situated on the banks of the Seine river in Paris, and boasts over 800 years of history as one of the world's oldest museums, attracting over 7 million visitors annually. With its collection of more than 35,000 pieces, a tour of the Louvre offers a comprehensive survey to Western art. Producing animation work involves transforming the world contained within the work and its characters into a drawing or painting, which often takes as its initial inspiration the works of past painters. In addition to the actual creative process, therefore, a wide knowledge of "painting" is often indispensable background knowledge for creators. It also sharpens and enhances the sensibilities of the viewer when faced with a work of art. Unfortunately, the opportunities for encountering such paintings and sculptures are fairly rare in Japan. Museums are commonly the preserve of adults who take in works of art silently and reverently, and hardly a place for kids to be able to visit casually. With this in mind, this exhibition was organized in order to provide a space where anyone can get a sense for the history of the Louvre buildings, and especially where kids can encounter "high" art in a relaxed setting. The paintings introduced at this exhibition have had their dimensions shrunk to about 40%, to fit the size and stature of children. An overview of work displayed on one wall enables viewers to appreciate the changes in French painterly expression from the 16th century Renaissance style right through to the naturalism of the early 19th century. The Louvre was initially constructed as a fortress at the end of the 12th century and later turned first into a palace, and later a museum. Excavated remains of the fortress are even now available for viewing in the Louvre's basement exhibition rooms, but it is well to remember that the history of this edifice is hardly a glorious one - the Louvre having been destroyed and abandoned several times over the years. This exhibition introduces such a "light and darkness" of the Louvre's history with a sculptural piece. The Ghibli, on the other hand, was a space that was designed to include children, to have them look, discover, and feel their way around art. This "Little Louvre Museum" exhibition hopes to be able to bring something amazing or incredible for kids to take home with them.

The Hakone Open-Air Museum was opened in 1969 to create a harmonic balance of the great nature of Hakone and Art. The unique experiences of open-air museum await you, as different seasons and weather create an ever-changing sensation of true art. The Museum realizes the philosophy of Henry Moore “Sculpture is an art of the open-air” with a grand backdrop of Hakone's great nature.

Most existing planetariums can only project approximately 2 million stars. However, MEGASTAR-II can reproduce, with up to 12.5x magnification, 5 million fixed stars that cannot be seen with our naked eye. Until MEGASTAR-II, the necessity of reproducing stars to that extent was not really thought possible among planetarium specialists. However, only MEGASTAR-II can reproduce the solidity, light and shades of the colors of the Milky Way and the fine details of the dark nebula. This capability cannot be found elsewhere. The "Geo-Cosmos" is the symbol exhibit of Miraikan and has 1 million LEDs closely set on its spherical, 6.5 m in diameter body. Based on the data sent from satellites, the appearance of the earth changes hourly on the displays and you can have a virtual experience of the "Earth as seen from outer space".

Have you ever heard of Pop-Up Books? Pop-up books have pictures that move as you turn the pages or pull on tabs. Full of surprises and fun, these books feature movements that delight and charm readers of all ages. Compared to a typical picture book that has been printed on flat pages, pop-up books require taking special steps to be created. How pop-up books are created demonstrates each of the processes involved, from the initial structural drawing of a book to cutting out its figures and finally putting the whole thing together. Follow the creation of Angel Smile, published by Shufunotomo, to learn all the tricks behind how a pop-up book is made, in this informative exhibit that is fun for the entire family.

Yokohama Children's Art Exhibition 2008

Hero of love and justice "Anpanman". The creator of this now internationally famous hero is Takashi Yanase. Yanase is also well known as manga artist, poet and editor, having produced a wide range of works over a span of more than 50 years. In this exhibition, a total of 120 representative works will be introduced on 6 different themes, covering various genres from acrylic paintings of Anpanman to the original handwritten lyrics of widely-known songs. In the exhibition room, there is a space for kids to write letters to Yanase and enjoy coloring activity. In addition, a variety of events for kids, such as Anpanman film screening and talk event entitled "Whispering about the author of Anpanman", will take place during the duration of the exhibition. Please check out for more details. Gallery Talk by Curators (for elementary & junior high school students) Dates & Time: August 2nd (Sat) & 24th (Sun) 13:30 Location: Special exhibition room (no reservation required) *Free passport or special exhibition ticket required.