Art Link Executive Committee live performance October 5th (Sun) 14:00- Free entry Yuki Toge (dance), Tomohiko Namiki (blues harp), Sabu Orimo (shakuhachi)

This exhibition was organized in order to further encourage the activities of artists who have previously contributed to Art Box's published anthologies and postcard books. Works by each artist, books of postcards, as well as anthologies and collected works related to travel published by Art Box will be on display and for sale.

Working with art objects "published" by the fictional publishing company Kita no Ishi Editions, artists Takashi Kitami and Shuji Tateishi present a selection of works created from collages of free motifs applied to black enamel coffers.

Maro's first solo exhibition in two years! New pastel works, original picture book illustrations and pottery are on display, while picture books and greeting cards are on sale. Also original tote bags, postcards, badges and previously exhibited manga. A pottery workshop will be held on October 6th (Mon), 7th (Tue) and 9th (Thu). Apply on the website below: http://www.juillet.jp/workshop/index.html The first 100 visitors to the exhibition will receive a free set of 4 Maro postcards!

A world of mirror suns by visual artist Mic Itaya. This series of mirror works was born out of a project to turn the world depicted in Itaya's paintings into products using a variety of approaches. Since the debut of these mirror works at Lapnet Ship in 2000, Itaya's fans of sensitive renderings of beauty has grown steadily. This exhibition, the first show of these mirrors in 5 years and Itaya's first solo show in 2 years, depicts the narcissistic behavior of the sun in how it assumes to mirror one's own form, becoming a sort of evidence for the existence of the self. The results are messages, concentrations of heat and light, fragments of the sun filled with light, shadow and color. Related events also planned. See website for details.

Showcasing a total of 20 paintings, 3D works and original drawings for picture books by illustrator Sansan.

40th Anniversary Open Call Kanagawa Gen Exhibition Open call exhibition showcasing about 100 works from all genres. -Location: Exhibition Rooms on 1F & 2F -Time: 11:00-18:00. Opens at 13:00 on the first day and closes at 17:00 on the last day.

The Tokyo Metropolitan Teien Art Museum celebrates its 25th anniversary this October. In a gesture of thanks and affection to all visitors to the museum thus far, we are holding a 25th anniversary commemorative exhibition entitled "Art Deco in the Former Prince Asaka Residence". In addition to being a prime opportunity for enjoying the ornamental architectural details of the museum, this will be an occasion for reflecting on future possibilities and potentially interesting museum projects and activities. Various events and projects are also scheduled to be held during the exhibition period. See website for more details.

On April 28th, 1908, the first ship of emigrants to Brazil, the "Kasato-maru", left Japan and arrived at the Port of Santos after a two-month voyage on June 18th. This year marks the 100th anniversary since the beginning of a wave of Japanese emigration to Brazil, and a variety of commemorative events are taking place all over Japan. Organized by the Japan Brazil Art Center, this Japan-Brazil Friendship exhibition is being held at the Kawasaki City Museum, showcasing works by 17 Brazilian contemporary artists, as well as accessories, crafts and fashion items selected by Brazilian journalists, reflecting the life and culture of the nation from various angles. Also on view are works by veteran artists such as architect Oscar Niemeyer (who turned 100 this year), as well as 94 year-old Tomie Oe, who is still active in Brazil. Film screenings are scheduled as well. Related Events -Brazil Festa in Kawasaki Date & Time: September 20th (Sat) 10:00-18:00 Location: Museum courtyard -Brazilian Film Screenings Dates: September 23rd (Tue/Holiday), 27th (Sat), 28th (Sun) Location: Screening Hall Fee: Adults ¥600, Students & Seniors ¥500 *For screening schedule and more details, please visit museum website. [Image: Caito "Untitled"]

Since 2001, one of the key missions of Tokyo Wonder Site has been "Making Site", which attempt to provide emerging artists with the opportunity to experiment with their works. As a result, the TWS Aoyama: Creator-in-Residence program was founded in November 2006, enabling them to not only provide exhibition opportunities but also to realize total support for artists' process of production. This year, Tokyo Wonder Site will start cooperating with ARTSPACE Visual Arts Centre in Sydney with the aim of organizing exchange residency programs and exhibitions. Three groups of Japanese artists and three Australian artists have been working closely together as part of our residence and exchange project. The outcome will be a group exhibition which will be held in both Tokyo and Sydney. We are the ones who construct the city. Our individual thoughts and actions respond to each other, intersecting and causing chain reactions to form the city. The lines coming out of each individual go beyond the phases of various phenomena, expanding and shrinking personal territories in a non-linear manner, and finally configuring the complex structures of the city. Noises and distorted components are also representative characteristics of cityscape. At times, the cityscape recreates itself and evolves into a virtual site in the same way that we use the Internet on a daily basis. Traveling between Tokyo and Sydney, there will be an elaborate multi-layered diorama of the city installed at each venue. -Gallery Talk The participating artists will guide you through their artworks, followed by a talk explaining this collaborative project between Artspace and Tokyo Wonder Site. The contemporary art scene and its future will be discussed as well. Date:　September 14th (Sun) 16:00-18:00 (reservation not required)
 [Image: Gail Priest "Photo Series for the CD/ Imaginary Conversations in　Reverberant Rooms" (2006) Photograph by Heidrun Lohr]

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.

Masayoshi Kodaira designs posters and catalogs for various museums and galleries, such as the Yokohama Museum and the Mito Art Museum, as well as advertisements for Laforet. He also handled overall art direction for Takeo Paper Show 2007 and 2008, corporate identity for the Hara Museum Arc program, all the while paying keen attention to choice of printing techniques and materials in order to fully realize his innovative ideas. All these projects have earned him a reputation as one of the hottest art directors and graphic designers active today. This exhibition traces Kodaira's working process and shows the origins of his ideas and inspirations. The first venue, Gallery at Lammfromm, features his exhibition posters for the Yoshitomo Nara exhibition at the Yokohama Art Museum, the Archigram experimental architecture 1961-1974 exhibition at the Mito Art Museum, designs for venue signs, along with his rough drafts and corrections that demonstrate the road to completion for all these designs. In addition, the second venue at the old Flame office will also have its working space open to the public, a rare glimpse into the environment in which these designs were created. On display here as well are materials and tools that fueled Kodaira's direction and design processes. Second venue Masayoshi Kodaira "Art Direction & Design" September 9th (Tue) - September 30th (Tue) Venue: Flame (old office) St Tropez Minami Aoyama #403, 6-3-14 Minami Aoyama, Minato-ku, Tokyo Tel 03-5469-5210 Talk event "Design & Design" Masamichi Katayama (Wonderwall) + Masayoshi Kodaira (Flame) September 21st (Sun) doors open 14:30, starts 15:00 Venue: Kou, 1-1-19 Uehara, Shibuya-ku Fee: ¥800 (includes one drink)

"Amelia's magazine" is a very personal magazine made by Amelia Gregory who lives in London. Amelia herself chooses all the cute photographs and the illustrations. It is published twice a year. Amelia picks and edits all material sent through the Internet, reflecting her uniqueness through her girlish point of view and using printing ink made of vegetables. At this exhibition, we are presenting the environment and the editor's office. There will also be back numbers, T-shirts and artworks for sale created by Amelia's favorite artists.

Autumn is the best season for mushrooms. Works in various media with mushroom motifs - cute, cool, realistic, and at times a bit deformed - have been gathered for this exhibition.

Alcohol, tea, coffee and tobacco are the world's four great stimulants, with a long history of giving pleasure to countless people, as well as a rich heritage of fostering and nurturing a wealth of culture. This exhibition, held to commemorate the 30th anniversary of its opening, focuses on how these stimulants relate to the history and culture of Japan, how their use and production developed, and how they came to be adopted by the Japanese. In addition, the rapidly changing face of stimulant culture over the second half of the 20th century, through the sales of these goods in the world's 8 great "kiosks" of distribution, such as New York, Paris and Shanghai, has led to new forms of culture centered around these stimulants, which are also examined at this exhibition. Various other events that reflect on the history of these stimulants are scheduled for the duration of the exhibition. See website for details.

Mizukawa's work deals with life-size issues that constantly surface in our daily lives. One of her most prominent works is a large-scale invisible ink drawing employing used water from her bathtub. Her recent series cynically captures the expressive reactions of women in their 20s towards beauty and health. Her jewelry pieces are made out of leftover bathtub water solidified with gelatin. Unlike real jewelry, these gelatinized products slowly shrivel, dry up and disappear. By dissecting the relationship between jewelry as commodity and art, Mizukawa exposes the liquid, fluctuating character of art and its appraisal in the market.

Cow Parade originated in Switzerland in 1998. Cow and bull figures decorated by local artists were displayed on the streets, and the event generated so much interest that it attracted numerous sponsors and donations. Since then, Cow Parade has traveled to a number of major cities including New York and Paris, drawing phenomenal crowds each time. The Tokyo-Marunouchi Cow Parade 2008 will take place this coming autumn, the third time this event has come to Tokyo. It will feature entries by young Art Award Tokyo 2008 prizewinners, including pupils from junior high schools in Chiyoda Ward, and also includes cow figures decorated by prominent personalities such as entertainer Shoko Nakagawa, architect Kengo Kuma and art director Kashiwa Sato. Eight calves (Mini Moos) will join the 65 life-sized fiberglass cattle figures in the parade, decorating and adding color to the Marunouchi office district. At the special cow shop inside Marunouchi Cafe "Ease" on the 1st floor of the Marunouchi Building, as well as at Marunouchi Loft on the 4th floor of the same building, original cow goods will be for sale. At the end of the festival, a charity event will be held to auction off the cows that decorate the streets of the district. Please visit event website for more details.

Cow Parade originated in Switzerland in 1998. Cow and bull figures decorated by local artists were displayed on the streets, and the event generated so much interest that it attracted numerous sponsors and donations. Since then, Cow Parade has been held in a number of major cities including New York and Paris, drawing phenomenal crowds each time. The Tokyo-Marunouchi Cow Parade 2008 will take place this coming autumn, the third time this event has come to Tokyo. It will feature entries by young Art Award Tokyo 2008 prizewinners, including pupils from junior high schools in Chiyoda Ward, and also includes cow figures decorated by prominent personalities such as entertainer Shoko Nakagawa, architect Kengo Kuma and art director Kashiwa Sato. Eight calves (Mini Moos) will join the 65 life-sized fiberglass cattle figures in the parade, decorating and adding color to the Marunouchi office district. At the special cow shop inside Marunouchi Cafe "Ease" on the 1st floor of the Marunouchi Building, as well as at Marunouchi Loft on the 4th floor of the same building, original cow goods will be for sale. At the end of the festival, a charity event will be held to auction off the cows that decorate the streets of the district. Please visit event website for more details.

Minatomachi Orai Wonder Lala Project 09 invites artists from around the world born in port cities to exhibit their work in collaboration with domestic Japanese artists using the entire harbor district of Yokohama as a stage. This event marks the 150th anniversary of the opening of the port of Yokohama in October 2009. This pre-event will be held in October 2008, focusing on the themes of port towns, immigration, and contemporary paths towards the future. The project will be participatory and hands-on, promoting dialogue with the audience. Works that condense the essence of the project will be on display, and workshops, performances and talks will also be held. Since the dawning of modernity, Yokohama has been a city where diverse forms of thought and viewpoints on the world and their attendant ways of life have intersected. Working from his historical context and the present state of Yokohama, participating artists will transcend national boundaries in an effort to aim towards...what exactly? This pre-event hopes to provide some answers. Venue: Yokohama ZAIM Cafe Annex http://zaimcafe.com/annex/ Various related events, workshops, talks etc are scheduled. See website for details (Japanese only).

These puppets, representing characters from the epic Indian poem the Mahabharata, are used in Wayang Kulit, a form of shadow puppetry from Indonesia. Wayang Kulit has evolved naturally over the years, adding new and original stories for example, or giving the characters more Indonesian-sounding names (such as changing Krishna to Kresna.) The puppets are made from buffalo leather and the rods used to support them made from buffalo horn. The puppet's exquisite shape is first chiseled out using very fine tools and then painted. The dalang (puppeteer) brings the puppets to life with his skillful improvised performance and narration, keeping the audience spellbound all night long. While listening to this narration and the accompanying music of the gamelan (an Indonesian musical ensemble), the audience can enjoy watching the puppets' silhouettes and can even go behind the screen to watch the dalang himself in action.

The first "Bome" solo exhibition to be held in Japan. On display are around 80 bishojo figures of beautiful young girls by the "King of Otaku" (according to the Cartier Foundation for Contemporary Art), from early works to his most recent creations.

Showcase in Ozone exhibits interior and design products by various creators, groups and companies on a 2-3 month rotating basis, acting as a space for promoting and launching new products on the Japanese market as well as unique experimental pieces.

The publication "Nanso Satomi Hakkenden" saw contributions by Bakin Kyotei (1767-1848) over a long period stretching from 1814-1842, during which time he created the longest ever collection of Japanese romance fiction (denki shosetsu), numbering some 98 episodes over 106 books. Before long, the publication was taken as a subject for the kabuki theater, and numerous ukiyo-e woodblock prints were also made on the topic. In a sense, the Hakkenden provided a deft cultural summary and compendium of the late Edo period. The popularity of this work continues unchanged to this day, and it is often used as material for art, literature, manga, film and theater. 2008 marks the 160th anniversary of the passing of Bakin. This exhibition focuses on works from the Hakkenden ukiyo-e collection of Jin Hattori, introducing viewers to the world of Hakkenden through archive materials, modern nihonga painting, contemporary kabuki theater, shojo manga and so on.

Togo Murano (1891-1984) is one of the most significant Japanese architects of the modern period, known for his design achievements based on a humanist perspective. He took on various styles, from avant-garde modernist design in the prewar era to dynamic yet delicately expressed design in the postwar era, in order to create architecture that would represent each city he worked in. Above all, Murano's interior design is where one might best see his approach, aesthetic, and philosophy on architecture reflected all at once. He worked on a ship interior right before WWII, where he created a theatrical environment that is reminiscent of the bottom of the ocean, consisting of guest rooms and a tea room, full of meticulously thought-out details handcrafted by specialists, which one might not notice at first glance. All the furniture and fabrics have a touch of playfulness and were designed by the architect himself. From the blueprints and models, we can learn about the working process that transpired between him, his staff, and the artisans he worked with. This exhibition also introduces the garden at his residence, as well as his last project, the Tanimura Art Museum. This exhibition looks closely into Murano's architecture and interior design, showcasing his blueprints, photographs, scale models, and furniture. Also, for the first time, Murano's ship interior, which was destroyed in the war, has been visualized and reconstructed through 3D computer animation. In addition, his sketch books, diaries, and other related personal effects are on display.

SFT will show a selection of items from Labraba, a store in Kichijoji which specializes in Mexican folk art. Some of the items available will be brightly coloured wooden animal carvings from Oahakan, ceramic figures of The Agular Family, famously collected by Rockefeller and Alexander Girard and beautiful, hand woven, woolen rugs from Zapotec. As all items are handmade they are all a little different and give a small insight into Mexican culture.

Graduated from the l'École Nationale Supérieure des Arts Appliqués et des Métiers d'Art in Paris. After having studied in a workshop in France as an apprentice for 4 years, Hideo Matsuda established his own atelier in Ota ward, Tokyo in 1978. Since then he has worked on projects for public buildings, churches and individual houses throughout Japan. Matsuda returned to France in 1996 and set up an atelier in Châlette-sur-Loing in the center of France near Montargis. Registered with the Chambre de Métiers in France, he now works on the creation and restoration of glass vitrines in churches, as well as giving instruction on the art of stained glass.

The Tale of Genji, a Japanese classic of world literature, was based on the observations recorded in Lady Shikibu Murasaki's diary, and read at the imperial court of the 5th year of the Kanko era (1008). 2008 marks the 1000 year anniversary of this historical work, and the museum is holding a special exhibition to commemorate the millenary of the Tale of Genji. Related events are also scheduled. See website for details.

"Annette Messager: The Messengers" is the first major solo exhibition for leading French artist Annette Messager to be held in Japan. Painting, photography, articles, objects assembled from found objects, words, stuffed animals, plush toys, fabrics, embroidery, thread and knitting: these and many other objects from everyday life have found their way into the art of Annette Messager since she began working in the 1970s. Keeping her work based firmly in everyday life, Messager explores the various dichotomies and contradictions inherent in the human condition: religion and secularity, humor and fear, love and pain, woman and man, animal and human, childhood and adulthood, life and death, surface and substance. Springing perhaps from meditations on impulsive collecting or the body, from games with plush toys, or from clever wordplay, Messager's art possesses both a childlike innocence and a brutality that afford multiple readings. With a flair for incorporating wry humor into even the most direct confrontations with negative aspects of human endeavor, Messager is able to move and delight people of all generations. Charming and fantastical, and at times taking strange and mysterious forms, Messager's art works are "messengers" that talk directly to our souls. This exhibition was originally shown at the Centre Pompidou in Paris and has toured to Finland and Korea. The roughly 30 works on show include Casino, for which the artist won the Golden Lion at the Venice Biennale in 2005, and other important works such as articulated-disarticulated.

The Edo-Tokyo Museum is holding an exhibition entitled "Asakusa Past and Present" starting September 14th (Sun). This year marks the 15th anniversary of the opening of the museum, as well as the 50th anniversary of the refurbishment of the main hall of Senso-ji temple. The Asakusa Tourism Association, which has devoted itself to the postwar reconstruction of the area, also celebrates its 60th anniversary this year. This exhibition showcases o-ema paintings from the Senso-ji collection, as well as three 'mikoshi' portable shrines from Asakusa Shrine, showing how Asakusa came to become a center of faith and devotional belief, where countless visitors flocked on pilgrimages. Asakusa also served as a popular entertainment quarter during the modern era. Through various documents that are testament to the hustle and bustle of the time, this exhibition takes examines Asakusa as a locus of Tokyo culture. Please visit museum website for more details.

Nachisan (Mt.Nachi), located in Higashimuro-gun, Wakayama, is one of the Three Sacred Mountains of Kumano, with the Nachi Waterfall (also known as Ichinotaki) as its primary object of worship. At the area called Kareike, along the path leading to this waterfall, a large amount of objects related to Buddhism, including sculptural and engraved images of divinities and ritual implements, were unearthed in 1918 and 1930. About 70 sutra cases were found, suggesting that there were a large number of sutra mounds, where Buddhist scriptures and other related objects were buried to be preserved for the world to come after the long period of the decline of Buddhism. Another noteworthy group of objects consists of Esoteric Buddhist statues and sanmayagyo (objects and mudras representing specific Esoteric Buddhist divinities) which form Jojin-e (the center section of the nine-sectioned Kongokai Mandala). Usually a mandala is painted on paper or silk, but in this case it is three-dimensionally represented using relief images of the divinities and of sanmayagyo resting on bowl-shaped lotus pedestals. This is the only example of such an object. The group also include Esoteric Buddhist implements, such as five kinds of ritual bells, vajras with a single prong, five prongs, or sacred jewel at each end, an incense burner, a set of six bowls, katsuma (a cross of vajras with three prongs), and shiketsu (four stakes on the four corners of an altar to rope off the sanctuary). These are believed to correspond to the items mentioned in "Nachisan Takimoto Kinkyomon Engi" written by Gyoyo in 1130, which is a record of his ascetic practices and a list of ritual implements he used to offer prayers to Buddha. Other finds included a priest's staff which is associated with Shugen (Buddhism combined with mountain worship), Nara period gilt bronze Buddhist statues, 84,000 miniature stupas made by Jian Hong-chu of China in 955, and Japanese bronze mirrors from the Kamakura period.

Open Screening Session Date and time: August 9th (Sat) and 10th (Sun), 10:00-17:00 Venue: University Museum, Toride Annex, Tokyo University of the Arts Free entry, come and go as you please August 9th (Sat): Regular voting by visitors (until 12:00 on the 10th) August 10th (Sun) 14:00-17:00: Selection of exhibition plan by selection committee members and TAP The main venue for Toride Art Project (TAP) will be Toride Ino Danchi. The following programs will also be held at the 101 artist village studio on the Ino Danchi premises: TAP 2008 Guest Artist 23rd Citizens' Culture Festival - Participating Artists in Related Projects Ibaraki 2008 Selected Artists from the Open Screening Session Schedule Details: August 9th (Sat) Exhibiting works of guest artists and participating artists in the Korean International Exchange Program August 16th (Sat) & 17th (Sun) Exhibiting works of selected artists from the open screening session Venue: Ino Artist Village Studio 101 (Open 12:00-16:00) Exhibiting Artists: TAP guest artists Gasei Sato (painter), Namaiki (creative unit), Port B (theater unit) Participating artists in the Korean International Exchange Program: Sumi Kanazawa (TAP 2002), Isao Suzuki (TAP 2005, 2007), Camera Yamanaka (TAP 2006) TAP 2008 Main Exhibition Dates: November 1st, 2nd, 3rd, 7th, 8th, 9th, 14th, 15th, 16th Venue: Various locations in Toride City, Ibaraki Prefecture (Toride Ino Danchi and others) Guest producer: Mikan Gumi (architectural unit) Guest artists: Mikan Gumi (architectural unit), Gasei Saito (painter), Namaiki (creative unit), Port B (theater unit)

From the collection of the Sette Museum in Seoul, Korea, this exhibition showcases 150 keys and locks, 30 bolts and 30 key holders. The Sette Museum is a private museum focusing on artifacts such as traditional Korean keys and locks whose beauty only increases with use and wear. Through these symbolic ornaments of security and wealth, this exhibition provides viewers with a glimpse of the traditional culture of Korea. *Muneyoshi Yanagi's house will be open to the public for the duration of the exhibition. Dates: 2nd Wednesdays, 2nd Saturdays, 3rd Wednesdays, 3rd Saturdays Time: 10:00-16:30 (Doors close at 16:00)

Coinciding with the duration of the Yokohama Triennale 2008, BankART1929 is hosting "BankART Life II". The purpose of this event is to promote a region-wide program that aims at the comprehensive management of a variety of existing businesses and to disseminate them throughout the entire region in cooperation with public and historical buildings, industrial remains, restaurant districts, vacant land and stores, etc. The concept of this event is "to open up and connect". The event will take place not only at the venues hosting the Triennale, but also the whole area surrounded by Shinko Port, Bashamichi, Isezakicho, Sakuragicho, Nogechiku, Hinodecho and Koganecho. Additionally, the event will be closely linked with various institutions like ZAIM in the Sozo Kaiwai (Creative City) area. Fee: BankART Life II ticket (includes Life II guide book) Adults ¥900, University Students ¥750, High School Students ¥350, Middle School Students and under free *Ticket holders will be able to see and participate in all exhibitions and performance events (with a ¥500 discount). Ticket valid for both BankART Life II & Yokohama Triennale (includes Life II guide book) Adults ¥2100, University Students ¥1600, High School Students ¥850, Middle School Students and under free Please visit gallery website for more details.

After holding the "Parallel Visions: Modern Artists and Outsider Art" exhibition featuring artists with mental disabilities from Japan and other countries, the Setagaya Art Museum began to collect "outsider art". This exhibition features work from the museum's collection, along with artworks provided by CREAHM (Creativity and Mental Disabilities), a non-profit organization that has long supported artists with disabilities living in Belgium.

Two new art studios will open in the former red-light district of Kogane-cho in Yokohama. These studios will form the main venue of the event and will also serve as the location for the opening of Koganecho Bazaar. The aim of Koganecho Bazaar is to regenerate the Koganecho district through the co-existence of art and community, and it can be seen as the first step in this process. For this event, daring not to be limited to a conventional interpretation of art, a comprehensive program is being organized that welcomes a wide range of ideas and events to reexamine the local environment, while also introducing new commercial ventures related to fashion, food and housing. As a unified whole, the festival will create a place for rich experience and it is hoped that this venture to revitalize the area will be warmly welcomed by a large number of visitors and local residents. It is also hoped that there will be a possibility to continue to develop the initiative in the near future. The whole area of newly-constructed studios under the railway tracks, plus the entire town of Yokohama itself, including unused and empty stores and the Ookagawa River area, will serve as exhibition sites for the Bazaar.

Sri Lanka is an island nation boasting a rich cultural heritage reaching back more than 2000 years. This exhibition features items revealing the essence of Sri Lankan culture, such as images of Buddhist figures and Hindu gods, as well as artifacts, and introduces its world heritage sites and areas of natural beauty. This is the first time that the finest examples of Sri Lankan cultural heritage are being exhibited on a large scale in Japan.

In conjunction with the Yokohama Triennale 2008, ZAIM's 33 resident art groups are holding open houses at their workshops and ateliers. Numerous events taking the form of a traveling excursion, from the Shinko area where the Triennale will be held, to BankART and ZAIM, will be held. Note: Depending on the day, some ateliers may not be open. Please look at the day's schedule posted on the bulletin board at the entrance to ZAIM. Every weekend from September 13th (Sat) to November 30th (Sun) Time: Fridays 18:00-21:00, Saturdays and Sundays 14:00-17:00

This is an exhibition of 108 works focusing mostly on previously unexhibited pieces, such as a 1988 work by Julian Schnabel (America, 1951-), who has in recent years won much attention for his work as a film director, drawings by John Cage (America, 1912-1992), and works by leading Japanese contemporary copperplate printmaking artist Tetsuro Komai (Japan, 1920-1976). Keith Haring's wall murals, which have covered signboards for more than 10 years now, will also be on display. In addition to these works, encounters with the artists will share with visitors the creative process and various hitherto unknown anecdotes behind the art - the "collection stories". Related events are also scheduled to be held. See website for details.

The Yamanashi Prefectural Museum of Art celebrates its 30th anniversary this year on November 3rd. From July 21st through December 24th last year, the museum conducted a survey among visitors asking them to select their favorite work from the museum collection. Over 1000 answers were submitted, and the results of the survey, as well as visitor comments, are on display at this exhibition. Additionally, this exhibition looks back on 30 years of the museum's history through an exhibition of masterpieces from their collection. Also on view are video clips, newspaper articles and photographs from the time of the museum's opening. Please visit exhibition website for more details. [Image: Jean-François Millet "The Sower" (1850) Yamanashi Prefectural Museum of Art Collection]

March 21st, 2008 will mark the centenary of the birth of Kashiko Kawakita (1908-1993) who, together with her husband Nagamasa Kawakita, devoted her life to cinema by vigorously introducing foreign films to Japan while promoting Japanese films abroad. Dressed in a kimono, Kashiko Kawakita, known as "Madame Kawakita," traveled around the world attending various international film festivals acting as a bridge between the Japanese film industry and the world. One could call her a "Film Ambassador." She actively introduced foreign films to Japan and vise versa, and also worked on promoting the significance of specialized organizations which incubated the film industry and contributed to the establishment of the National Film Center and Kawakita Memorial Film Institute. With the support of the Kawakita Memorial Film Institute, this exhibition showcases photographs, posters, and various artifacts to retrospectively introduce Madame Kawakita's contribution to the Japanese film industry. This exhibition accompanies the screening series "Madame Kawakita: L’Ambassadrice cinématographique du film européen" presented at the NFC's theater.

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 permanent exhibition "Information Science Technology and Society" focuses on work that encourages active first-hand participation while learning more about information technology. For this exhibition, this floor of about 150 square meters has been renovated in order to create the "Media Lab," a flexible space capable of accommodating various exhibition configurations. In the ever-changing field of information technology, the content of permanent exhibitions on the topic frequently faced difficulties in keeping pace with what they attempted to showcase. Instead of changing exhibitions frequently, the same space of the exhibition venue is remolded each time in a manner befitting the exhibition contents, flexibly. The "Media Lab", unlike existing conceptions of permanent exhibitions, is distinguished by a space made up of several modular, flexible "media walls" for display purposes, which are themselves not limited to that one use. In order for it to become a space that is continually made and remade, endlessly, the actual structure of the space is simple and terse, allowing a flexible response to viewer needs and the requirements of the exhibition materials. From April 24th (Thu) to August 31st (Sun), a special exhibition entitled "Expressive Researchers" will be held, taking its inspiration from the intersection and fusion of art, technology and science, showcasing the "device art" mechanisms that will challenge future frameworks through which art will be created.

The First floor of the Heiseikan is dedicated to the display of archaeological finds from Japan.

First broadcasted in autumn 2005, "Girls from Hell" is an original anime work that touched a chord with many, not just anime fans. "Girls" has since spread far and wide, with a second edition released, adaptations for Japanese TV drama, Nakayoshi serializations and more. The work returns this fall at this exhibition at Logos Gallery, commemorating the release of the third series of "Girls from Hell." On display and for sale are new dolls and figures by Etsuko Miura and collections of drawings and illustrations for the series.

Location: Exhibition Room 1 Contact: Office Yuni Kikaku yunikow@hotmail.com