VOL.20 100 Years of Mingei.
. In the past 4 or 5 years, I have enjoyed looking at old Japanese things, including local toys. This has been spurred on by the fact that I have fewer opportunities to go abroad, partly due to the influence of Corona.
At such a time, "100 Years of Mingei" is currently being held at the National Museum of Modern Art in Takebashi.
I was told that the place was crowded on weekends due to the recent increase in attention to folk art, so I visited late on a weekday to avoid the crowds.
Since this exhibition commemorates the 60th anniversary of the death of Muneyoshi Yanagi, the father of folk art, it is a collection of valuable items from the collections of folk art museums and individuals from all over Japan, and the exhibition is quite worth seeing to learn about the flow and historical background of folk art.
Among the exhibits, I was particularly interested in an exhibit of clothing worn by the predecessors of the Mingei movement, which I had hoped to someday do somewhere.
They must have been a unique group in the region, as old photos show them always dressed in tweed jackets and pocket watches on their chests. There was an exhibit about such things, and the tweeds were put in from England via Bernard Leach. Kawai Kanjiro's glasses , too, were amazing.
I am sure that no matter what type of business you are in, you will be able to gain or learn something from this exhibition.
. and I would recommend visiting such a rich exhibition again.
There is always something new to notice, such as seeing something that did not come to your eyes the first time.
Photographs are not allowed in the exhibition halls, with some exceptions, so of course you must purchase the exhibition catalog.
No matter how widespread the use of computers becomes, the information we see with the naked eye in museums and other places will always increase the number of drawers in our minds.
. It is an act that leaves a more lasting impression on the mind than seeing it on the flat surface of a screen.
The exhibition reminded us that going where we can and seeing many good things is such an important action that it will affect the rest of our lives.
PROFILE
After working for United Arrows and Landscape Products, he established Swimsuit Department in 2010. In September 2015, he presided over the first modernism show in Japan.
http://swimsuit-department.com
