A group exhibition in a community center. It turns out putting on this show is free for anyone who lives, or works, in the Akasaka area. The same is probably true of every civic center around the country but I imagine the shows they put on are rarely held as well as this one. Artists are all in their 30s or 40s and their works are a mix of painting and sculpture. All draw unevenly from pop culture—folklore, urban myth and legend, Boris Karloff, Big Foot, lingerie—and contemporary concerns, fostering an artistic community to make such work possible, full stop. It’s not easy out there, I can assure you. Seeing all of this is so refreshing and seeing it hang so readily alongside the community lends everything a sense of relevance and urgency often missing from the average white cube gallery. Admittedly, some pieces are rough and ready but they all come from somewhere genuine without being suffocated by the economic pressure bearing down on them. After all, we all have bills to pay! Some works go as far as merging the act of painting with technology, highlighting the absurdity of using tech for simply being efficient when said tech would far better put to use if only to exploit its own absurdity. I would go as far as to say this is some of the most promising and provocative work being made in Japan right now.

「へそ」 “Heso” featuring: KINJO @knjstupi, BONSAI CLUB @bonsaiclub_store, 大塚諒平 Ryohei Otsuka @ryohei.otsuka, 鈴木夏海 Natsumi Suzuki @lessernanuw, BIEN @bien_jp, DIEGO @diego7a14, TUHEADS @tu_heads, 小島樹

August 8-23, 2026 at Akasaka Civic Center (3F/4F) 09:00~21:30