Taro Okamoto Museum Of Art - Meet The Artist Behind The Myth of Tomorrow

Masterpieces on Exhibit

What kind of works are exhibited at the Taro Okamoto Museum of Art in Kawasaki? This time, we would like to introduce several different works, carefully selected from those on display.

"The Law of the Forest".

"Scarred Arm".

Here is the original drawing of "The Myth of Tomorrow". When making a large scale piece, Okamoto would first finish a smaller copy as the original, and then steadily enlarge it into the finished version.

The completed version of "The Myth of Tomorrow" is on permanent display in Shibuya Station. For more information on this piece, please see The Myth of Tomorrow: Taro Okamoto's Mural In Shibuya Station.

The Life of Taro Okamoto

In addition to exhibitions of his works, there is also an area dedicated to the life, personality and career of Taro Okamoto.

Here you can see a chronology of Okamoto's life, with works of his peering through the gaps in the table. With each of his many works arranged in chronological order in this table it possible to easily see which works were made when.

Just behind this table is a display about Okamoto's parents: Ippei who was a cartoonist, and his mother Kanoko, who was a novelist. Taro Okamoto was fortunate to have grown up as an artist in an artistic family such as this.

Various Works of Taro Okamoto

Okamoto did not exclusively paint; he was also a talented sculptor, potter, writer and made works in several other mediums as well. It goes without saying that many of these works are also displayed at the Taro Okamoto Museum of Art as well.

"Dog Flowerpot".
In this smiling, four-legged dog-like creature's back there are three holes for plants to be grown.

"Afternoon day".

This work is also used as the tombstone for Taro Okamoto's grave in the Tama Cemetery in Tokyo.

"Chair Refusing to Sit".
These are strange chairs that are impossible to sit on. There are large mouths and eyes all over the chairs, each of which have their own expression. No matter which way it is approached, these chairs are thoroughly uncomfortable to sit on. It is said that this work was produced by Okamoto's desire to "make a work that overcomes rationalism and functionalism".

Here you can not only see, but also touch and use many of the works by Taro Okamoto, and these eye-catching works truly draw the public into them.

An Exhibition Where Individuality Explodes

At the Taro Okamoto Museum of Art in Kawasaki, the special exhibitions are changed four times a year. When we visited this time, we were able to see the Taro Okamoto Modern Arts Award's prize winning works on display; these works are openly recruited each year from the public. "Jidai wo sozosuru mono wa dareka!" (Who is going to make this era!?) is the slogan of this event, and in accordance with this sentiment, many challenging, avant-garde works are exhibited one after another here. The spirit of Taro Okamoto and his works is still alive and resounding in contemporary Japanese art.

Taro Okamoto Museum of Art, Kawasaki

7-1-5 Masugata, Tama-ku, Kawasaki-shi, 〒214-0032