The “Hilma af Klint Exhibition” opened on March 4th (Tuesday) at the National Museum of Modern Art in Tokyo, Takahashi, and will run until June 15th (Sunday).
This exhibition is the first major retrospective of the Swedish artist Hilma af Klint in Asia, who has recently been reevaluated as a pioneer of abstract painting. After receiving formal art education at the Royal Academy of Fine Arts, Hilma af Klint began her career as a portrait and landscape painter, gaining recognition. As a rare professional female artist of her time, she achieved success with traditional painting. However, she became increasingly drawn to mysticism, occult philosophy, and spiritualism, creating abstract works influenced by séances and spiritual experiences. By the time of her death at age 81 in 1944, she had left behind over 1,000 works. Most of her works were never exhibited and remained in her possession, but since the 1980s, they began to be introduced in exhibitions and slowly gained recognition. Her European tour, which began in 2013 at the Stockholm Museum of Modern Art, attracted over a million visitors, and the 2018 retrospective at the Guggenheim Museum in New York set a record for the museum with over 600,000 attendees.
The exhibition will feature around 140 works, including the 10-piece painting series The Ten Largest (1907), which are over 3 meters in height, all making their first appearance in Japan. The display will focus on the artist’s iconic work The Paintings for the Temple (1906–1915), alongside notes and sketches left by Hilma af Klint. The exhibition, structured in five chapters, delves into her artistic career and creative sources, incorporating insights into contemporary occult philosophies and the women’s movement that influenced her work.
By courtesy of The Hilma af Klint Foundation
By courtesy of The Hilma af Klint Foundation
By courtesy of The Hilma af Klint Foundation
By courtesy of The Hilma af Klint Foundation
By courtesy of The Hilma af Klint Foundation
By courtesy of The Hilma af Klint Foundation
Hilma af Klint: The Beyond
Venue: The National Museum of Modern Art, Tokyo, 1st Floor Special Exhibition Gallery
Exhibition Period: March 4 (Tuesday) – June 15 (Sunday), 2025
Closed: Mondays (open on March 31 and May 5), May 7 (Wednesday)
Opening Hours: 10:00 AM – 5:00 PM (Fridays and Saturdays: 10:00 AM – 8:00 PM)
Last Admission: 30 minutes before closing
Organizers: The National Museum of Modern Art, Tokyo, The Nikkei Inc., NHK
Sponsors: Obayashi Corporation, DNP (Dai Nippon Printing Co., Ltd.)
Special Cooperation: Hilma af Klint Foundation
Supported by: Embassy of Sweden
Inquiries: 050-5541-8600 (Hello Dial)
