“Prism of the Real” Reframes Japan’s Creative Evolution 1989–2010 at NACT

Early Heisei Art: The Prologue & Introduction

Next, we dive into each chapter of the exhibition, highlighting artists and works that make a lasting impression. Before the first chapter, the Prologue and Introduction set the stage. In the years leading up to 1989, as Japan experienced rapid economic growth, exchanges with international artists such as Joseph Beuys and Nam June Paik began to flourish. The gallery displays archival items like the chalkboard Beuys used during dialogue sessions at Tokyo University of the Arts, alongside documents recording Japanese artists’ participation in major international art events such as documenta and the Venice Biennale.

This period also saw artists breaking away from traditional materials, experimenting with everyday objects. Kodai Nakahara’s LEGO, Takashi Murakami’s Polyrhythm crafted from plastic models, and Noboru Tsubaki’s monumental urethane sculpture Aesthetic Pollution are prime examples. Bold in concept and striking in appearance, these works heralded the arrival of a new era in Japanese art.