The best things to do in Tokyo this weekend

Fireworks may be a summer tradition in Japan, but you can still find them ocassionally towards the end of the year. Such as this special event in Odaiba that promises a series of mini fireworks throughout December.

The five-minute pyrotechnic display can be viewed from anywhere in the Seaside Park area, as the fireworks will be launched from around the Statue of Liberty towards the sea between Odaiba and the Rainbow Bridge.

This year, the fireworks take place every Saturday in December at 7pm (December 2, 9, 16 and 23, except December 30). On December 23, the fireworks display will be synchronised to music.

Dubbed Ao no Dokutsu, meaning blue cavern, this breathtaking illumination was a huge hit when it made its debut along the Meguro River back in 2014. The now annual event made a comeback in Shibuya a couple of years ago, where it will again bathe the tree-lined walkway leading to Yoyogi Park in a fantastical blue glow this holiday season until Christmas Day.

Stretched out for 800 metres along Koen-dori, this fantastical illumination is made up of around 770,000 blue LEDs. The lights are also reflected off the ground to create an immersive experience. This year, the site is also hosting a Christmas Market of around 20 stalls offering festive meals and treats until 9pm.

The illuminations take place daily between 3pm and 10pm.

Yokohama's spacious Sankeien garden is home to several priceless structures, including a three-storey pagoda from Kyoto, historical teahouses and a feudal lord’s former residence. On this occasion, the Rinshunkaku building, a former samurai lord’s summer villa and a registered Important Cultural Property, will be opened to the public from December 4 to 10, coinciding with the golden red and yellow autumn foliage. Entry costs ¥1,000 and tickets must be purchased online via Peatix.

Visit during the evening hours on Fridays, Saturdays, Sundays and holidays between November 13 to December 10 for a special light-up between sundown and 7.30pm (last entry 7pm).

Christmas in Tokyo is a mind-boggling mashup of traditions, with fancy cakes, KFC chicken buckets (yes, really) and romantic dinners on Christmas Eve.

Continental-style markets, however, still play a prominent role in the lead-up to the big day. The German influence is the most pronounced, probably due to the year-round popularity of beer, which often appears to be the main attraction.

If you find shopping for Christmas presents stressful, having a hot cup of mulled wine in hand should take the edge off things as you peruse the festive stalls. Just be careful with that stuff – one too many ladles of glühwein and you'll be buying more gifts for your relatives than you bargained for.

The days may be getting shorter and colder, but even so, Tokyo doesn't turn into a dark and desolate place at this time of year. In fact, from autumn to winter in the city, millions of colourful LED lights are wrapped around trees and buildings, turning Tokyo into a sparkling wonderland. Illuminations, as they’re usually known here, are big in Japan, but Tokyo’s are some of the biggest and the best.

The neighbourhood surrounding Toranomon Hills is getting light art installations for a limited time this winter. This event is held in partnership with the Light Art Collection, an outfit known for operating the annual Light Festival in Amsterdam. 

You’ll come across seven breath-taking installations created by artists, architects and product designers from around the world. Oval Park features bioluminescence lights scattered all over the grass lawn. Made to look like a field of fireflies, this stunning display is created by Studio Toer from the Netherlands.

Saio Park, on the other hand, has a tornado-like light installation made from a stack of rings, designed by UxU Studio in Taiwan. Make sure you stop by the Step Garden as well to see an installation of colourful butterflies floating among the greenery, created by Italian design studio Aether & Hemera.

The late Wangari Maathai kickstarted the Mottainai movement in 2005, a year after she became the first African woman to win the Nobel Peace Prize on account of her political and environmental activism. The Japan-based campaign encourages environmental conservation and sustainable use of resources through a variety of means, ranging from custom vending machines to events like this weekend flea market around Tokyo.

There's often a variety of booths propagating the Mottainai message – reduce, reuse, recycle, respect – along with flea market stalls selling clothing, tableware, DVDs, toys, books and other cheap bargains.

Depending on the weekend, the market is set up at different locations including Nakano Central Park, Komazawa Olympic Park and the rooftop of Parco Kichijoji. The dates, times and venues are listed below.

This autumn, The National Art Center in Tokyo is hosting an exclusive retrospective dedicated to the life and work of acclaimed French fashion designer Yves Saint Laurent. Saint Laurent became a pivotal figure in fashion at just 21, leading the House of Dior before establishing his eponymous brand in 1962.

Crowned the ‘King of Fashion’, Saint Laurent revolutionised 20th-century women’s fashion with iconic creations like the 1965 Mondrian dresses and the introduction of safari pantsuits. This retrospective is the first comprehensive showcase of the designer’s work in Japan, offering insight into his 40-year illustrious career and distinctive style through various artefacts and photographs.

A collaborative effort with the Musée Yves Saint Laurent Paris, the exhibition showcases around 110 pieces of the designer's seminal work, including garments, accessories and sketches.

Shinji Ohmaki creates breathtaking, large-scale installations that audiences lose themselves in. These works are more than just ‘Insta-genic’ spectacles; with them, the artist disrupts our bodily and psychological senses in order to get us asking some big questions: What has led society to the issues it now faces, and what are our reasons for continuing to exist?

As you visit the National Art Center, Tokyo’s largest exhibition hall, you become a participant in worlds conjured by three immersive installations that make dramatic use of the vast space. Through the extremes of enveloping darkness and intensely illuminating light, augmented by video, sound and poetry, Ohmaki creates a sense of integration with nature that is increasingly being lost in modern lifestyles.

Reflected in these works are the artist’s thoughts on civilisation and nature, as well as life and death, over the period spanning the 2011 Great East Japan Earthquake and the onset of the Covid-19 pandemic.

Text by Darren Gore

French artist Claude Monet was initially ridiculed for his Impressionism, which consisted of painting thin, rapid strokes using vivid colours. Still, he is now recognised as one of the greatest artists of his time. 2024 will mark 150 years since the world’s first Impressionist exhibition was held in Paris in 1874. This year, Japan is hosting two significant retrospectives dedicated to Monet and his works in Tokyo and Osaka to celebrate the momentous anniversary. The exhibition in Tokyo will be held at the Ueno Royal Museum from October 20 to January 28 2024, and showcase everything from his early portraits to late landscapes, including pieces from his famous ‘haystacks’ series.

Vincent van Gogh (1853-1890) remains one of the key figures in Western art history, and it is his influence on the still life genre that is explored by this all-star exhibition. With Van Gogh’s work accompanied by still life pieces from the likes of Cézanne, Gaugin, Monet and Renoir, the Dutch Post-Impressionist’s work is placed within the context of the development of European still life painting from the 17th-century Netherlands through to the early 20th century.

This reveals what Van Gogh learned from his predecessors, how this manifested itself in his own work, and how he in turn influenced future generations of artists. Of the 69 works shown here, 25 are by Van Gogh himself.

It is of course Van Gogh’s ‘Sunflowers’ paintings that he is best known for (along with his tragic personal life). This exhibition doesn’t disappoint on the floral front, with an area devoted to sunflower paintings from both Van Gogh and those he inspired.

Note: Purchase tickets online and save ¥200. The museum is closed on Mondays (except January 8 2024) and Dec 28-Jan 3.

Text by Darren Gore

Born in Llanelli, Wales, in 1958, Cerith Wyn Evans pursued his artistic education in London, notably at Saint Martin’s School of Art and the Royal College of Art. Initially known for his involvement in experimental filmmaking and assisting famed director Derek Jarman, Evans transitioned into visual art in the 1990s, yet his cinematic roots left an indelible mark. His oeuvre stands out for its exploration of form, be it through photography, neon-lit texts, sound, or video installations. Often invoking post-symbolist and avant-garde literature, his works serve as enigmatic interplays of light and shadow, fact and fiction. 

Evans is celebrated for his nuanced use of light and has carved a niche with his sculptural creations that challenge perceptions, blending the tangible and intangible. His mastery in manipulating neon, sound, photography and glass to shape immersive environments renders a unique sensory experience. With several accolades under his belt, including notable exhibitions at prestigious institutions worldwide, Evans' artworks grace the permanent collections of iconic institutions such as the Museum of Modern Art, Tate Modern, and of course, the Fondation Louis Vuitton. This Tokyo exhibition, encapsulating works curated before the foundation's opening in 2007, promises an enriching experience of Evans’ unparalleled artistic journey.

Cubism’s groundbreaking inception by Pablo Picasso and Georges Braque revolutionised art in the early 20th century, offering a geometric perspective that birthed abstract art and Surrealism. The Centre Pompidou in Paris, globally revered for its modern art collection, brings this transformative movement to Japan with over fifty works making their debut appearance here.

Featuring masterpieces from the likes of Picasso and Braque, the exhibition showcases around 140 works, encapsulating the movement’s rich diversity. Highlights include Braque’s impactful ‘Grand Nu’ and Picasso’s exemplary ‘Femme assise dans un fauteuil’. Moreover, Robert Delaunay’s magnificent ‘La Ville de Paris’ will grace Japan for the first time, alongside exemplary works by Chagall.

With a kaleidoscopic showcase of Cubism’s most influential artists including Constantin Brancusi, Marc Chagall, Sonia Delaunay and Amedeo Modigliani, this event marks the first comprehensive showcase of Cubism in Japan in fifty years. 

Since 1990, Theo Jansen has been creating large-scale, animal-like kinetic sculptures that are able to ‘walk’ when touched by the power of wind. Named Strandbeest (Dutch for ‘beach animals’) and intended as a fusion of art and engineering, the artificial life of these playful creations has a real charm in an age when AI is increasingly perceived as a threat.

Several Strandbeest have been transported to Chiba Prefectural Museum of Art for this exhibition commemorating the 150th anniversary of this seaside prefecture’s founding. One creature walks sideways at considerable speed in the direction of received wind, while another has a freely swinging tail with a suppleness that belies its construction from solid tubes.

The Strandbeest will be moving within the gallery at scheduled times each day. However, a special event at Chiba Port on Sunday December 3 will see them walk outside, against a coastal backdrop.

Text by Darren Gore

Washoku, as Japanese food is known in its homeland, is globally more popular than ever. Conveyor-belt sushi restaurants are a staple of the world’s cities, while the wider public is discovering the nutritional benefits of many traditional Japanese dishes. The year 2020 saw washoku designated as a Unesco Intangible Cultural Heritage, and this recognition is now celebrated (belatedly due to the Covid-19 pandemic) by this fascinating large-scale exhibition.

Across multiple zones featuring interactive installations, replica dishes and much more, the Washoku showcase explores how both nature and culture have over centuries shaped a cuisine that for many visitors is one of Japan’s key attractions.

Highlights include a look at how fermentation, now a buzzword with foodies, was developed as a preservation technique that could also stave off boredom with a limited range of ingredients. The scientific similarity between fermentation and simple rotting away is also explained. Life-sized replicas of Edo period (1603-1868) food stalls, meanwhile, reveal the street food origins of sushi and tempura.

Note: The exhibition is closed on Mondays (expect Dec 25, Jan 8, Feb 12 and Feb 19), Dec 28-Jan 1, Jan 9, and Feb 13.

Text by Darren Gore