The Tikotin Museum of Japanese Art in Haifa is set to launch three new exhibitions on June 23 in the presence of incoming Japanese Ambassador Yusuke Arai and Haifa Mayor Yona Yahav.
The triad centerpiece is a globally peripatetic show called Japanese Design Today 100, the first rendition of which went on the road back in 2004. The current collection is the third version of a spread that represents a wide spectrum of Japanese aesthetics, ranging from the latest envelope-pushing technological creations to more traditional artifacts.
The selection takes in close to 100 items, most of which were created in the 21st century. There are also much older works that offer a retrospective look at the Japanese arts and design timeline and allow us to trace the roots of contemporary Japanese design. The exhibits range from consumer products to virtual systems and services, which, the organizers say, “convey not only the characteristics of Japanese design but also the current state of Japanese culture.”
There are works that, over the years, have taken on something of an iconic status. These include the first Nikon camera, a bottle of Kikkoman soy sauce, a Walkman manufactured by Sony, and an electric rice cooker.
Sela's relocation to Japan, and his immersion into Japanese culture
There are also a couple of Japanese-related exhibitions by Israeli artists that are due to open in tandem. Twenty-six-year-old Israeli photographer Michael Sela relocated to Japan in 2019, and since then, has set out to capture intimate vignettes of Japanese society and culture. That introspective approach comes across in his Light on Skin collection, curated by Etty Glass Gisis. Sela takes pictures in black and white, which, he says, imbues the shots with a sense of timelessness while capturing a frozen moment in time that nonetheless references our inescapable mortality.
Japanese Sushi Girls by Hedva Rokach, curated by Glass Gisis, also goes for intimacy but with very different dynamics. Her works feature five Japanese women living in Israel who gather to prepare sushi for IDF soldiers serving on our frontlines. Rokach talks about gaining a charming sense of “harmony and order” from the women as they worked in unison one day last January to make treats for our soldiers.
The exhibitions close on November 25.
For more information: https://www.tmja.org.il/eng