Janet Cardiff – The Forty Part Motet (A reworking of “Spem in Alium” by Thomas Tallis 1573)
Hara Museum ARC
Until May 11
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Janet Cardiff
Gallery A at Hara Museum ARC, designed by Arata Isozaki, is a space illuminated by natural light pouring in through a 12-meter-high skylight supported by four cedar pillars, the intensity modulated by the passing clouds. Although the gallery embodies the characteristics of a white cube for contemporary art works, the feel of nature is visceral within a space that was designed as an expression of “ma,” the spatial and temporal concepts that form the essence of Japanese aesthetics. In this space, we present Janet Cardiff’s sound installation The Forty Part Motet.
Created by Cardiff early in her career, this polyphonic work is based on Spem in Alium by Thomas Tallis, the 16th century English composer and organist for the Chapel Royal. Since its inception in 2001, it has moved the hearts of people throughout the world wherever it has been shown, including the Museum of Modern Art, New York, and in Japan at the Ginza Maison Hermes Forum (2009) and other venues.
In the gallery, all one sees and hears are 40 speakers arranged in an oval and 40 voices, one per speaker, first heard individually but then coming together in the here and now to transform the venue into an immersive space. In terms of lyrics, there are only a few lines, but the experience of a space sculpturally constructed by sound is an overwhelming one and a visceral reminder of art’s transcendent nature.
Since the days of its predecessor, the Hara Museum of Contemporary Art (Shinagawa, Tokyo), the focus of Hara Museum ARC has been to provide viewers with unique spatial and temporal experiences that emerge from the confluence of the museum’s architecture, environment and art. Just as Olafur Eliasson’s Your light shadow, Elizabeth Peyton’s solo exhibition Still life and Lee Kit’s We used to be more sensitive resonated beautifully with the Hara Museum, so surely will The Forty Part Motet resonate with Gallery A to become a once-in-a-lifetime spectacle in the here and now.
After Hara Museum ARC, the work will travel to three other museums in Japan (details to be announced after March 2025). As unique spaces created by different architects, each venue is sure to be a visual and aural experience unique to each space.
Created by Cardiff early in her career, this polyphonic work is based on Spem in Alium by Thomas Tallis, the 16th century English composer and organist for the Chapel Royal. Since its inception in 2001, it has moved the hearts of people throughout the world wherever it has been shown, including the Museum of Modern Art, New York, and in Japan at the Ginza Maison Hermes Forum (2009) and other venues.
In the gallery, all one sees and hears are 40 speakers arranged in an oval and 40 voices, one per speaker, first heard individually but then coming together in the here and now to transform the venue into an immersive space. In terms of lyrics, there are only a few lines, but the experience of a space sculpturally constructed by sound is an overwhelming one and a visceral reminder of art’s transcendent nature.
Since the days of its predecessor, the Hara Museum of Contemporary Art (Shinagawa, Tokyo), the focus of Hara Museum ARC has been to provide viewers with unique spatial and temporal experiences that emerge from the confluence of the museum’s architecture, environment and art. Just as Olafur Eliasson’s Your light shadow, Elizabeth Peyton’s solo exhibition Still life and Lee Kit’s We used to be more sensitive resonated beautifully with the Hara Museum, so surely will The Forty Part Motet resonate with Gallery A to become a once-in-a-lifetime spectacle in the here and now.
After Hara Museum ARC, the work will travel to three other museums in Japan (details to be announced after March 2025). As unique spaces created by different architects, each venue is sure to be a visual and aural experience unique to each space.
Schedule Now in session | Mar 15 (Sat) 2025-May 11 (Sun) 2025 54 days left Opening Hours Information
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| Fee | Adults ¥1800, Seniors 70 & Over ¥1500, University and High School Students ¥1000, Junior High and Elementary School Students ¥800 | ||||
| Website | https://www.haramuseum.or.jp/en/arc/exhibition/1294/ | ||||
| Venue | Hara Museum ARC https://www.haramuseum.or.jp/en/arc/ | ||||
| Location | 2855-1 Kanai, Shibukawa-shi, Gunma 377-0027 | ||||
| Access | 10 minutes by taxi from Shibukawa Station on the JR Joetsu line; From JR Shibukawa Station, take the Kan-etsu Kotsu bus towards Ikaho Onsen and get off at Green Bokujo-mae. The venue is 7 minute walk from there. | ||||
| Phone | 0279-24-6585 | ||||
| Related images | Click on the image to enlarge it  |
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