Darren Gore

Wondering where’s best to get your art and culture fix this year? You’ve come to the right place, as Time Out has done some research. Warhol and Pollock will be on display in New York, while retrospectives of sixteenth, seventeenth and eighteenth century female artists will be showcased in Rome. There’s an exhibition of Ukrainian art taking place in Berlin, digital sea explorations in Norway and glass sculpture displays in Australia – but there’s plenty more where that came from. Read on for the coolest exhibitions taking place all across the planet throughout 2025. RECOMMENDED:🛶The best things to do in the world in 2025🛍️ The coolest neighbourhoods in the world🎪 The world’s best music festivals for 2025🌃 The best cities in the world right now  

Though Tokyo enjoys a reputation as a futuristic megacity, and patches of green can appear scarce from the heights of a skyscraper within the city, some one-third of Greater Tokyo is in fact made up of woodland. These are the places to seek out when you need a break from the frenetic pace of Tokyo’s main hubs. What’s more, some of the best are also home to cafés that vibe with their serene surroundings. Some of these serene forest cafés can be found within the city’s 23 wards, while others are waiting to be discovered in the lush countryside that unfolds to the west of the metropolis. Here are three standout examples, ranging from an Italian-style garden café to a terrace overlooking a dramatic gorge. Recommended: 7 best nature getaways in Tokyo

Tokyo’s Harajuku-Omotesando intersection has a new landmark in the form of Tokyu Plaza Harajuku Harakado. With stunning design that features a vertical rooftop garden embedded into a reflective, geometric facade, the new development shares aesthetic DNA with Tokyo Plaza Omotesando Harajuku directly opposite. A total of 75 shops, restaurants, bars and other businesses can be found across Harakado’s nine above-ground and three basement levels. Mixed among the shopping opportunities are a number of cool experiences: some unique in this corner of the city, others unrivalled in all of Tokyo. The leafy rooftop garden combines with a giant, sun-inspired art installation to conjure a refreshing sense of wild nature, while an authentic sento bath brings retro vibes to this 21st-century development. Harakado’s retail aspect too offers some pleasant surprises, including openings from some lesser-known names to watch, and a concept store dedicated to the safest of safe sex: the solo variety. You could spend a whole day at this fitting new addition to Harajuku-Omotesando, a spot where cutting-edge culture and sleek luxury have long converged.RECOMMENDED: 50 best things to do in Harajuku

With stunning design that features a vertical rooftop garden embedded into a reflective, geometric facade, the new Tokyu Plaza Harajuku Harakado shares aesthetic DNA with Tokyo Plaza Omotesando Harajuku directly opposite. A total of 75 shops, restaurants, bars and other businesses can be found across Harakado’s nine above-ground and three basement levels. Mixed among the shopping opportunities are a number of cool experiences: some unique in this corner of the city, others unrivalled in all of Tokyo. The leafy rooftop garden combines with a giant, sun-inspired art installation to conjure a refreshing sense of wild nature, while an authentic sento bath brings retro vibes to this 21st-century development. Harakado’s retail aspect too offers some pleasant surprises, including openings from some lesser-known names to watch, and a concept store dedicated to the safest of safe sex: the solo variety. You could spend a whole day at this fitting new addition to Harajuku-Omotesando, a district where cutting-edge architecture, youth culture and sleek luxury have long converged. Discover the best things to do at Tokyu Plaza Harajuku Harakado here.

Don’t be fooled by the name: this stylish new bar in Ebisu is dedicated not to beer, but rather to cocktails made with premium shochu sourced from all over Japan. Draft Ebisu’s cocktail selection is overseen by the bartender of hip Kuramae watering hole Nomura Shoten, Soran Nomura, and its well-timed opening coincides with shochu’s growing international popularity. Shochu as traditionally enjoyed (straight, or mixed with soda or hot water) isn’t listed on the menu here: the intention is to redefine perceptions of the base ingredient and the forms it can be given. This is ably achieved by Nomura’s lineup of eight shochu cocktails, and the intention is to expand this selection further. Certain cocktails are on-tap and ready-to-drink, an advantage that inspired the bar’s name. The fine shochu varieties used as cocktail bases can, nonetheless, be ordered as stand-alone tipples. Highlights include the Japanese black tea and cream cheese cocktail, with hints of raspberries and Earl Grey with a cheese-y foam, and the spicy palo santo sour, which blends the toasty aroma of barley shochu with chai syrup and is served with a burning piece of wood. The food menu comprises dishes that pair well with shochu, including oyster yakisoba. Sample these and other creations in this counter bar-style space that itself innovates upon Japanese tradition. There's also a private room, or head out to the terrace overlooking Ebisu Station.

Swedish-born artist Hilma af Klint (1862-1944) was a pioneer of abstract painting, whose work prefigured that of such revered figures as Piet Mondrian and Wassily Kandinsky. Yet, for decades, her work was known only to a handful of people. The 21st century, however, has seen Klint receive some long overdue global recognition. A 2018 retrospective at New York's Guggenheim Museum attracted the largest visitor numbers in that venue's history, and now the prestigious National Museum of Modern Art, Tokyo presents her first career overview to be held in Asia. The exhibition centres upon selections from "The Paintings for the Temple", a series which Klint, who was involved in the then-booming spiritualist movement, produced between 1906 and 1915 after believing the project to have been 'commissioned' from another dimension during a seance. The artist perceived these works which combine abstract and figurative elements, and organic and geometric forms, to have been created 'through' her by some external spiritual force. Advance tickets are sold until March 3. This exhibition is closed on Mondays (except March 31 and May 5) as well as May 7.

 Since time immemorial, cultures across the globe have shared a common desire: the simple wish for happiness and good fortune for themselves and their loved ones. This exhibition explores centuries of Japanese art expressing this wish, and is perfectly timed to span the New Year holiday, when such thoughts are foremost in our minds. Some 60 works are on show, each conveying the wishes of the Japanese people for longevity, fertility, prosperity and other blessings. Evident in many of these, such as a 1952 painting of a snow-capped Mt. Fuji by Yokoyama Taikan (1868-1958), are elements of the natural and animal worlds that today continue to symbolise good luck. Another example of this comes from revered painter Itō Jakuchū (1716-1800), in the form of cranes rendered in ink on paper. Each of the assembled works has been selected for its ability to inspire joy in the viewer.

Spanish-born Joan Miró (1893-1983) has long been considered one of the most important artists of the twentieth century; revered for his poetic transformation of nature-derived shapes such as the moon and stars into abstract symbols. In this major retrospective, the various phases of Miró's career are presented together in Japan for the first time. Overseen by the Fundació Joan Miró, based in the artist's birthplace of Barcelona, this exhibition sees masterpieces held in collections across the world brought to Tokyo, to form a comprehensive overview of an artistic practice that encompassed painting, ceramics, sculpture and more. Post-impressionistic early works, such as the 1919 self-portrait, give way to a resolutely surrealist approach as Miró becomes involved in the artistic current then sweeping Paris, where he spent much of the 1920s and '30s. The subsequent three decades then see the artist develop and hone the singular style with which he is most associated, exemplified here by exhibition highlight 'The Morning Star' (1940) and other selections from his 'Constellations' series. Finally, the show highlights how, even in his final years, Miró continued his lifelong search for new modes of expression. The exhibition is closed on Mondays (except April 28, May 5) as well as May 7.

Cutting-edge technologies such as AI and the merging of virtual and real worlds are reshaping our planet at an ever-faster pace. A wider look back at human history, meanwhile, reveals that art and technology have always progressed in parallel: computer art, where the two spheres become truly enmeshed with each other, is the latest example of this. This boldly future-facing exhibition presents a selection of contemporary art whose creators have utilised AI, VR and game engines, as well as works produced entirely by generative AI. Together, these diverse exhibits explore radical new aesthetics, and revolutionary approaches to image-making. Among works that alternate between digital and real space, highlights include enchanting video works by Japan's Asako Fujikura, in which she uses 3D graphic rendering to create virtual cities where industrial materials move around as if alive. Beeple, meanwhile, an alias of US artist, designer and animator Mike Winkelmann, presents 'Human one' (2021). This kinetic video sculpture is intended to represent the first 'human' born within the metaverse, as they travel through a changing digital landscape. This exhibition is open until 10pm on April 29 and May 6.

An embodiment of modern Japanese pop culture meets the traditional crafts in this unabashedly fun exhibition. In roughly 80 works, all created for this event, of 20 artisans imagine what might result from an encounter between the creatures of the Pokémon universe, and the time-honoured craft that they have chosen to master. Following a highly popular run at the National Crafts Museum in Ishikawa, and a tour of the USA, the exhibition finally arrives in Tokyo, with a few bonus works courtesy of Azabudai Hills Gallery. Standout creations include a sculpture of Jolteon, a quadrupedal with spiny yellow fur, stunningly rendered in copper plated with gold and silver by Taiichiro Yoshida. Large, amphibian-like Pokémon Venusaur, meanwhile, is given form as a painted ceramic by Sadamasa Imai. A whole host of limited-edition merchandise based on the exhibits will be on sale for collectors and souvenir-hunters alike. The exhibition is closed on December 31.

The 1960s and ’70s were a perfect storm of art, social activism and emerging technologies, with newly accessible media such as video giving a platform to previously unheard voices, and socially progressive artists integrating these new technologies into their work. Feminism, as this exhibition explores, was prominent among the movements that leveraged new moving image media to challenge established social attitudes. Moreover, this dynamic deployment of tech in the battle against lingering sexism continues into the present day. Nine important works from the National Museum of Modern Art collection are brought together to tell this story, with four ‘key terms’ serving as hints to understand and appreciate them: ‘The Mass Media and Images’, ‘The Personal’, 'The Body and Identity', and ‘Dialogue’. Highlights include ‘Love Condition’ (2020), a vividly colourful video piece by Mai Endo and Aya Momose, in which the two artists knead clay while discussing the notion of 'ideal genitalia'. Mud, meanwhile, is the material of choice in Shiota Chiharu’s ‘Bathroom’, a 1999 video work which shows the artist covering her body with the substance, in an attempt to reconnect with pure sensation amidst the artificiality of urban life. The exhibition is closed on Mondays (except November 4) and November 5.

Among the illustrated characters that emerged in Japan across the second half of the 20th century, and continue to capture hearts both at home and across the globe, none represents the phenomenon better than Hello Kitty. With a half-century now having passed since the cartoon feline was introduced by the Sanrio company, this major exhibition looks at how Kitty-chan’s design has evolved over decades of cultural change: without ever losing that innate charm that has endeared her to generation after generation. The largest collection of Hello Kitty goods ever amassed in one place, as well as video content and other media, gradually reveals the secrets to this character’s appeal: how besides keeping pace with the times while simultaneously transcending them, Hello Kitty can mirror the day-to-day moods of each and every fan. Highlights include collaboration pieces created with well-known artists and designers, and a series of immersive photo spots featuring not only Kitty-chan but also other faces from the Sanrio stable, including My Melody and Cinnamoroll.

What Museum, in Tokyo waterfront district Tennozu, presents an ‘inadvertent’ collection of contemporary art belonging to renowned tech and AI entrepreneur, Takafumi Takahashi. The ‘T2 Collection’, which takes its name from owner’s initials, has been amassed over the past six years as Takahashi gradually dived deeper into the world of modern art. Along the way he picked up works which captivated him in some way, by notable Japanese and international artists including Kohei Nawa, Barry McGee and Tatsuo Miyajima. What was never consciously acquired with a ‘collection’ in mind is now on public display for the first – and possibly only – time. Across the 35 diverse works featured here, a common thread is Takahashi’s recognition of a connection between art and entrepreneurship, in that the leading players in both spheres challenge the world with unique and unprecedented concepts and visions. One exhibition room, dedicated to the medium of photography, explores how contemporary artists have developed their photographic expression amid a rapid rate of change in both technology and the role of images in society.

Master painter Claude Monet (1840-1926) is best known for Impressionist works that captured on canvas the ceaseless transitions of nature. As explored by this major exhibition, however, in the later years of his career, this French artist pursued a more abstract approach, with inspiration coming from both personal and wider realities such as bereavement, his own eye disease and the First World War. The natural world remained Monet’s ostensible subject matter, such as his signature water lily ponds and their surrounding trees and skies, but his depictions of such scenes were then additionally coloured by internal distress. For this show, around 50 pieces from Musée Marmottan Monet in Paris have been brought over to Japan, with many being shown in the country for the very first time. These are augmented by works held in collections across Japan, to form an expansive look at Monet’s later career. The highlight here is a large screen of water lilies, which stands over two metres tall and makes for a truly immersive experience. The exhibition is closed on Mondays (except November 4, January 13, February 10 and February 11) as well as November 5, December 28-January 1, and January 14.

US-born photographer Alec Soth (b. 1969) has won worldwide acclaim for his largely narrative-driven images, which often depict scenes from his native Minnesota and the wider Midwest region. His work has also earned him full membership in the legendary Magnum Photos collective, whose former members include the likes of Ansel Adams, Robert Capa and Henri Cartier-Bresson. Though this major solo exhibition spans the entirety of Soth’s three-decade career, the Tokyo Photographic Art Museum has curated the show to be somewhat more nuanced than the typical retrospective. The experts at what is Japan’s most prestigious photography venue have selected scenes shot almost entirely indoors to create a distinctive and new interpretation of the artist’s life-work so far. Multiple works here are taken from series of photographs that Soth has produced on travels both across his homeland, and then further afield. One of these series, titled ‘I Know How Furiously Your Heart is Beating’, was key in his transition from US road trip exploration to more international shooting. For this series, which in 2019 was compiled into a photo book, Soth hopped across the globe to visit and photograph numerous celebrated individuals in the rooms where they spent most of their time. Subjects range from the late dancer and choreographer Anna Halprin to Japanese novelist Hanya Yanagihara.  The exhibition is closed on Mondays (except when Monday is a holiday, the museum is open and closed the following day) and

As if an after-dark stroll around Kennin-ji, Kyoto’s oldest Zen temple, wasn’t transcendental enough, this hugely popular, hi-tech-powered event heightens the experience through a combination of the latest in audio-visual and projection technology, and ‘Neuro Music’ audio that affects brain waves at a deeper level than a conventional background soundtrack. Located in the historic former capital’s Shijo-Gion district, this elegant temple has already wowed tens of thousands of visitors with its Zen Night Walk Kyoto experience that brings a new dimension to this sacred site that boasts over eight centuries of history. Photo: Supplied For this special after-dark visit, ultra-high-quality speakers have been installed across the temple’s precincts to provide an ambient-style soundtrack which, according to the developer of the proprietary Neuro Music technology, attenuates your brain waves to induce such sensations as focus and relaxation. Moreover, with the addition of cutting-edge lighting and projection tech, the entire setup conjures up a new and stunningly unique Zen aesthetic that's almost ethereal.  Photo: Supplied As you pass though what have been christened the temple’s ‘sound corridors’, you will be drawn into a mindful state by a series of art installations and the ambient soundtrack. Some of the highlights to look out for on your night walk at this historic temple include a sea of blue clouds appearing to float over the Daioen, one of the Japan’s most revered dry lan

In Kyoto this autumn, the historical city’s rich traditional culture converges with cutting-edge technology to create a breathtaking form of immersive, contemporary art. Nine sites around this history-steeped former capital will be transformed by Naked digital art collective, via projection mapping and other advanced tech, into evening-only digital art installations, with each themed to reflect the location’s individual character.   Among these are a number of Unesco World Heritage Sites. A mountainside temple hosts a digital art experience that riffs on the use of candles in Buddhist ceremonies, while a former imperial castle becomes a large-scale artwork conveying the delights of traditional Kyoto cuisine. This series of events, known collectively as Naked Garden One Kyoto 2024, is running from September 14 to December 8. However, each venue has different dates.  Photo: Nicholashan/DreamstimeKyoto's Nishi Hongan-ji Temple during daytime Nishi Hongan-ji Temple October 1–16 Established back in the 14th century and located at this site since 1591, this sprawling, majestic temple complex is celebrating the 30th anniversary of its World Heritage Site designation. For the first half of October, the Hiun-kaku – which is regarded as one of Kyoto’s three most important pavilions – will be transformed via hi-tech illuminations into a ‘temple of light’. Photo: Naked, Inc. Nijo-jo Castle October 25–December 8 This low-lying castle, built in 1679 by the Tokugawa Shogunate and used a

Tokyo Disneyland’s Cinderella Castle is once again the backdrop for a multi-sensory spectacle, which brings together Disney, Pixar and Marvel characters in a mesmerising projection-mapping-based evening show. Following a five-year hiatus due to the pandemic, 'Reach for the Stars' has returned stronger than ever with over ten feature films represented. 画像提供：©Disney Without giving too many spoilers, proceedings open with Disney characters coming to life and then soaring skywards. Tinker Bell, from ‘Peter Pan’, sprinkles pixie dust into the air as she invites the audience into the show’s dream-like alternate reality. One standout moment is the debut of a segment based upon Disney’s 2023 animated movie ‘Wish’, which marked the studio’s 100th anniversary. As fireworks explode and illuminate the scene, the film’s Star character ascends to the castle’s peak. 画像提供：©Disney Pixar fans, meanwhile, will be thrilled at segments based upon ‘Up’, ‘Luca’, ‘Brave’ and, making its ‘Reach for the Stars’ debut, ‘Wall-E’. A touching scene from the latter, involving Wall-E and his sweetheart Eve, is made even more magical as bursts of fireworks shoot up in celebration of their love. 画像提供：©Disney Marvel also makes an impressive appearance, with 'cameos' from Iron Man, Captain America and Captain Marvel, along with Rocket and Groot from ‘Guardians of the Galaxy’. In a particularly jaw-dropping scene, Thor raises his hammer, summoning flames around the castle as lightning crackles all around.

Tokyo’s Roppongi district possesses a curious – and compelling – double identity: contemporary arts hotspot by day, and party central after the sun goes down. The annual Roppongi Art Night dynamically unites these two facets in a celebration of creativity that takes over major art museums, shopping complexes and the city streets themselves. Over three evenings from September 27 to 29, the 13th edition of Roppongi Art Night comprises over 40 programmes from 30 artists and art collectives, curated to reflect the 2024 edition’s theme of ‘A Festival of City, Art and Future’. Across an eclectic selection of exhibitions, performances, installations, digital works, music and more, runs a common thread of global-mindedness and continuation into the next generation. Alongside major ongoing art shows, including the spectacular Keiichi Tanaami retrospective at The National Art Center, Tokyo, Roppongi Art Night includes a whole host of exclusive presentations. Many take place in public spaces, and can be enjoyed without spending a single yen. Among these, here are just a few of the highlights. Rondo of Flowers, 2018. Photo: Mito Murakami A procession of glowing flowers lights up Roppongi’s streets 'PongiRing - Parade of Light Flower' is a one-night-only ‘living artwork’ created by Kyoto-born Kyota Takahashi. A crowd of people wearing flower-shaped, glow-in-the-dark rubber rings will walk from the National Art Center, Tokyo, through Tokyo Midtown and on to Roppongi Hills. LED lights on

Tokyo is so vibrant that it seems there’s never a quiet moment in the city. Every weekend is jam-packed with events, festivals and exhibitions of every kind. This September 27-29 weekend is no exception. In fact, you should brace yourself for a big weekend, as Tokyo is hosting a diverse line-up of festivals from contemporary art to traditional shrine parades. There’s even a rare late-season fireworks festival if you missed any of the summer pyrotechnic showcases a few months back. So get ready to go out and make the most of your weekend in Tokyo. Photo: Ephemeral Collection, Atelier Sisu Roppongi Art Night September 27-29 Tokyo’s Roppongi district is a contemporary arts hub by day and a party hotspot after the sun goes down. This annual event combines these two facets in a celebration of creativity that takes over art museums, shopping centres and the streets themselves. The 13th edition of Roppongi Art Night comprises over 40 programmes from 30 artists and art collectives, featuring exhibitions, performances, installations, digital works, music and much more. Alongside major ongoing shows, Roppongi Art Night includes a host of exclusive presentations. Many take place in public spaces, and can be enjoyed without spending a single yen. Kyota Takahashi’s ‘PongiRing - Parade of Light Flower’ will see a procession of people wearing flower-shaped, glow-in-the-dark rubber rings parade through the streets. Japan’s traditional Bon Odori festival, meanwhile, is reimagined by Electro

The boundary between nature and contemporary art becomes headily indistinct at this huge art installation outside Tokyo in Tochigi prefecture. The Genki-ro is a towering, furnace-like structure erected within a subterranean space, and the latest in a series of large, highly experiential works by artist Takashi Kuribayashi, whose practice explores the boundaries between nature and society, the body and everyday life. This stirring piece of art functions as both something to appreciate with multiple senses, and a literally immersive experience that could be described as a sauna fuelled by both herb-infused steam and Kuribayashi’s creative powers. 画像提供：TRAPOL「大谷元気炉六号基」 The Genki-ro (literally, ’the furnace of vitality’) stands down in a tree-enclosed, open-air space in Utsunomiya’s Oyamachi, on land usually closed to the public. Its custom-built furnace boils water infused with medicinal herbs, then sends the aromatic steam through a pipe and up out of a sculptural arrangement of wood resembling the hollowed-out base of a voluminous tree. The surrounding ‘cavern’ is pervaded with a sense of healthy revitalisation. 画像提供：TRAPOL「大谷元気炉六号基」 Basic admission to the Genki-ro space costs ¥1,500. A more stimulating experience, however, can be had for a ticket price of ¥3,500. This option allows entrance to a windowed, sauna-style room pumped full of the Genki-ro’s high-temperature steam. Photo: Trapol ‘Bathing’ in this pungent medicinal steam requires that you bring swimwear: visito