WHAT MUSEUM to Hold OKETA COLLECTION “YES YOU CAN : The Strength of Life through Art” from August 6th, 2022 (Sat)

OKETA COLLECTION consists of antiques and works of contemporary art assembled by married couple Shunji and Asako Oketa over the course of two decades. In recent years, the collection has been exhibited in a range of art museums and gallery spaces, conveying the unique allure of contemporary art. WHAT MUSEUM is now showcasing OKETA COLLECTION in two parts, each with different themes.

Following on from the first exhibition, “Mariage: From Antiques to Contemporary Art” (held April 28–July 3, 2022), the second exhibition, entitled “YES YOU CAN: The Strength of Life through Art,” will exhibit works from world-renowned artist Yayoi Kusama, who first sparked the Oketas’ interest in contemporary art, alongside up-and-coming Japanese and international contemporary female artists such as Aki Kondo, Jadé Fadojutimi and Hiroka Yamashita. These works, which the Oketas fell in love with, at first sight, seem to be the very essence of the OKETA COLLECTION, which is full of strength and zest for life, always having fun and never stopping. In today’s unstable society, this exhibition will deliver positive energy by exhibiting artworks with the message of believing in yourself and living positively, which is also embodied in the title of one of the exhibiting artist’s Julia Chiang’s artwork, “YES YOU CAN.” Some related events will also be held during the exhibition period. The details will be announced in due course.

Title: OKETA COLLECTION “YES YOU CAN : The Strength of Life through Art”
Dates: August 6th (Sat) – October 16th, 2022 (Sun)
Venue: WHAT Museum 2F (Warehouse TERRADA G Building 2-6-10 Higashi-Shinagawa, Shinagawa-ku, Tokyo 140-0002)
Open Hours: Tuesday – Sunday, 11:00 AM – 6:00 PM (Admission until 5:00 PM), closed on Mondays (but open when Monday is a public holiday, then closed the following Tuesday)
Admission: Adults 1,200 yen / University or vocational college students 700 yen / Students under high school age Free
* Online ticket system. Tickets will be on sale on July 9th, 2022 (Sat).
* Including the admission for the concurrent exhibition “Architectural Model: Historical Transition as a Medium of Architecture”
Organizer: WHAT MUSEUM
Planner: OKETA COLLECTION, WHAT MUSEUM
Cooperation on venue graphic: Ayaka Shimizu
URL: https://what.warehouseofart.org/exhibitions/oketa-collection_yesyoucan

Ay Tjoe Christine, Kei Imazu, Anne Kagioka Rigoulet, Rikako Kawauchi, Asami Kiyokawa, Yayoi Kusama, Aki Kondo, Claire Tabouret, Julia Chiang, Katherine Bernhardt, Jadé Fadojutimi, Genesis Belanger, Tala Madani, Hiroka Yamashita, Rokkaku Ayako, and more.
Special exhibition: Eikoh Hosoe

Exhibition space featuring works by Yayoi Kusama and many other artists

There will be an exhibition space focusing on Yayoi Kusama, Aki Kondo, Jadé Fadojutimi, and Hiroka Yamashita to appreciate the artworks of each artist. It features precious three-dimensional pieces from Yayoi Kusama, created in the 1980s, alongside other large-scale, dynamic works from Japanese artists, such as Aki Kondo’s “Stars, Sparkling” (2021, approx. 227 × 545 cm), Kei Imazu’s “My Heart In My Hand (Gray Shade)” (2020, 300 × 200 cm), and Anne Kagioka Rigoulet’s “Reflection h-27” (2021, approx. 194 × 391 cm). These are further accompanied by vivid works from overseas artists such as Genesis Belanger, Katherine Bernhardt and Tala Madani, reflecting a range of edgy, pop-inflected visual styles.

Around 25 Pieces Making Their OKETA COLLECTION Debut

The exhibition will feature some 25 works that have never been shown in OKETA COLLECTION before. These include Yayoi Kusama’s “Infinity Nets SPQOC”; five works from Aki Kondo, including “Stars, Sparkling”; four works from Hiroka Yamashita, including “Red Mountain”; Kei Imazu’s “My Heart In My Hand (Gray Shade)”; Julia Chiang’s “YES YOU CAN”; and Genesis Belanger’s “Make Me an Offer”, alongside works from Ay Tjoe Christine, Katherine Bernhardt, Claire Tabouret, Rikako Kawauchi, Anne Kagioka Rigoulet, and Asami Kiyokawa. Each piece has been carefully selected by the Oketas for this exhibition, displaying an array of domestic Japanese and international artists.

Audio Guides Narrated by the Artworks’ Very Own Collectors

The Oketas have prepared audio guides for the exhibition, where they share anecdotes and commentaries relating to the collection. Download the official WHAT MUSEUM app to use the audio guide when visiting the museum. (Free)

Video Interviews with Exhibiting Artists

Interviews with artists whose works are / were featured in the exhibition will be available in our WHAT ARTIST INTERVIEW series via the official WHAT MUSEUM YouTube channel. An interview with Craig Kucia, whose work is featured in the first exhibition, “Mariage: From Antiques to Contemporary Art,” will be released in early June and the museum will continue to release a series of rare interviews with the artists themselves, in which they talk about their thoughts on their works.

Official YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/c/WHATMUSEUM/videos

WHAT MUSEUM opened in Tennoz, Tokyo in December 2020. It is a facility to make artists’ and collectors’ precious art properties that have been entrusted to us accessible to the public. We have used our unique insight as a warehousing company to explore the concept of what an art facility should be. The result is to open up the warehouse to offer the public a look at art that they would not ordinarily have the opportunity to see. The museum exhibits works by artists active in the contemporary art scene side-by-side with the thoughts of the collectors as well as the artists, offering an innovative space for the appreciation of art. The name of WHAT (WAREHOUSE OF ART TERRADA) implies the cultural value which is gleaming quietly in the warehouse, and the museum exhibits paintings, three-dimensional works as well as architectural models, photographs, movies, literature and installations. We plan and exhibit these diversified arts and cultures in our individual style of museum as a warehouse company in new and unique approaches.

https://what.warehouseofart.org/en