A bilingual art magazine that introduces Japanese art and culture, focusing on contemporary art, architecture, fashion, music, and other aspects of Japanese art and culture without borders in both Japanese and English.
vol. 15 features Hideaki Anno Exhibition, THE HEROES Exhibition and Hiroshi Senju
《interview》Hideaki Anno Exhibition
Hideaki Anno’s latest work “Shin Evangelion the Movie,” for which he served as general director, became a blockbuster hit, grossing more than 10 billion yen at the box office.
The world’s first “Hideaki Anno Exhibition” is currently being held at the National Art Center, Tokyo, tracing the trajectory of his activities with a vast amount of materials.
In addition to interviews with Ryusuke Hikawa, vice president of the Anime and Special Effects Archive Corporation (ATAC) and an animation and special effects researcher, and Hiroshi Miyoshi, secretary general of ATAC and Color Corporation, ONBEAT will introduce the highlights of the exhibition through an exhibition report and explore the secrets of Hideaki Anno’s creations.
《interview 》Sword x Ukiyoe Exhibition
“THE HEROES Swords ✖ Ukiyoe” will be held next year at Mori Arts Center Gallery. The exhibition introduces the glories of admirable heroes (THE HEROES) through swords and warrior paintings from the collection of the Museum of Fine Arts, Boston.
In an exclusive interview with Yuriko Iwakiri, who is in charge of the Ukiyoe part of the exhibition, she explains the highlights of the exhibition, including Ukiyoe by Kunisada Utagawa, Kuniyoshi Utagawa, Hiroshige Utagawa, and others from the Museum of Fine Arts, Boston, as well as swords such as Yasutsuna, the oldest and most famous sword, and other domestic works, including the sword “Usukimaru (knee-maru)”.
《interview 》Hiroshi Senju
Hiroshi Senju’s reputation continues to grow both in Japan and abroad, with awards such as the Isamu Noguchi Award, the Japan-U.S. Distinguished Service Award, the 77th Grace Prize, and the Japan Art Academy Prize.
What is in his mind, after more than 40 years of painting?
Hoping “to be a renaissance of Japanese-style painting”, he continues to explore the possibilities of Japanese painting. Along with his “Waterfalls and Cliffs from the Screen of Kongobuji Temple at Koyasan” and his newly released “Memory of Water” series, which he recalls as “a painting I made together with Kukai, we reveal the secrets of Senju Hiroshi’s creativity.
Serials: Yoichi Ochiai’s Gaze
In this series, we will unravel the world of media artist Yoichi Ochiai, who wears many hats, through his own words and works.
In the fifth installment, describing the pandemic as an opportunity to have an interest in human-body expression, Ochiai talked about his new nude expression, which is based on the theme of “nudity and physicality”.
He also introduces his joint project with the Japan Philharmonic Orchestra, “Naika suru Ongakkai”.
The Value of Japanese Contemporary Art by Ryutaro Takahashi
This is a series of articles by Ryutaro Takahashi, a renowned connoisseur in the contemporary art world, who has collected valuable early works by Yayoi Kusama, Takashi Murakami, Yoshitomo Nara, and others, which later became their masterpieces.
In this fifth installment, Takahashi introduces the world of Yayoi Kusama, an “artist in constant battle,” who occupies an important position in the Takahashi collection and has had a great influence on Takahashi’s life.
《Serials》 Yuko Hasegawa
In this series, the professional Curator Yuko Hasegawa delves into complex topics from an artistic point of view.
In this third installment, Hasegawa, who became a director of 21st Century Museum of Contemporary Art, Kanazawa this year, discusses the museum’s vision for the future of art: “Art and New Ecology”, introducing the same name exhibition held at The University Art Museum with works by Aki Inomata, Hiroshi Ono, Sputniko! ×x Tomomi Nishizawa, Keiken, HATRA/Synflux, Thijs Biersteker+Stefano Mancuso, Revital Cohen & Tuur van Balen.
Yoshihito Akatsuka
Yoshihito Akatsuka, a member of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences in Hollywood who has been involved in the art direction in the famous Hollywood films such as “Babel” and “Kill Bill,” has started a series of interviews with notable art directors in the Japanese film industry in order to explore the work of art directors in movies.
The first installment of this series features Yuji Tsuzuki, who was prized for his work on “Bakuman” (dir. Hitoshi Daikon) and “Anger” (dir. Sang-il Lee) and also recently involed in “The Naked Director 2” (dir. Masaharu Take) and “The Last Letter” (dir. Shunji Iwai).
Special Features Miu Komatsu
Artist Miu Komatsu premiered her new work “Next Mandala: Home of the Soul” at “THE NEW CONTEXT CONFERENCE 2021 TOKYO” hosted by Digital Garage, Inc. in August 2021, where she also appeared as a speaker.
Through her speech with the theme “Harmony between humankind and the global environment,” we will take a closer look at the image of Miu Komatsu as an artist.
《Interview》 with Mitsuhiro Takemura
From NY to LA and now to Berlin, media aesthete Mitsuhiro Takemura has been constantly immersed himself in the inventive places “scenius” and been deciphering the world’s information.
In this exclusive interview, Takemura talks about the “fear” he feels about the current situation in Japan, and the concept of “ma” that Japanese people should regain as a way to break out of this situation.
《Special Feature》 Ryunosuke Okazaki
We will interview fashion designer Ryunosuke Okazaki, who was born in Hiroshima and works with symmetric shapes based on the theme of “Prayer.
The exhibition focuses on his encounter with the “Rise and Fall Project” launched by the late Kenzo Takada, and the process and awareness that led him to his current theme and production method, including the dress “JOMONJOMON” that won the “Purchase Award” at the 69th Tokyo University of the Arts Graduation and Completion Works Exhibition.
ONBEAT exclusive artworks for sale
A variety of talented works by up-and-coming young artists are for sale.
Interview with Kenichi Asano
Daisuke Teshima Interview
Interview with Ryunosuke Okazaki, ONBEAT PICKS
Ronin | Globus | ONBEAT Artist-in-Residence Program
Prayer and Festival Exhibition