Things to do in Tokyo this week

In celebration of its 100th anniversary, watch manufacturer Citizen has put on a special and very Instagram-worthy exhibition titled ‘We Celebrate Time’ until December 16. Local starchitect Tsuyoshi Tane is the brain behind the show; he's also featured in the ongoing exhibition Archaeology of the Future. The highlight of this exhibition, which focuses on the themes of time and light, is undoubtedly the space which is filled with 72,000 golden movements of wristwatches...

Mingei literally means ‘arts of the people’ and it refers to handcrafted objects produced by local craftsmen for everyday use. The term was established in 1925 by Soetsu Yanagi (1889 – 1961) who defined the art of mingei as ‘natural, sincere, safe and simple’. This exhibition at 21_21 Design Sight, titled ‘MINGEI - Another Kind of Art’, is directed by product designer Naoto Fukasawa. On display are 146 traditional and contemporary mingei items from The Japan Folk Crafts Museum's collection, handpicked by Fukasawa, along with his personal collection and photographs revealing new forms of mingei. This exhibition covers a highly associative exploration of the legacy of mingei that began to flourish the 1920s.

The symbiotic relationship between photography and architecture began in 1827, when French inventor Joseph Nicephore Niepce (1765-1833) took the first ever photograph of a corner of a building through a window. Niépce was searching for ways to produce images, and thus set up a device called a camera obscura, which captured and projected scenes illuminated by sunlight. The result he got was a blurred image of a building, but from then on, a new medium was born and the link was created – photography has since been used to document old and new structures as well as cityscapes. Taken mostly from the museum’s collection, this exhibition will feature architectural stills by local and international photographers. The works on display include works from the late 1820s to newer works by contemporary photographers. Here you will discover and experience architecture from the photographer’s perspective.

The Phillips Collection in Washington D.C. is one of the world’s most distinguished collections of impressionist and modern American and European art. Founded by art collector Duncan Phillips in 1921, the modern art museum has been collaborating with institutions and foundations around the world to share its impressive collection. This year (2018), The Phillips Collection turns 100 years old, and to celebrate this centennial milestone, Mitsubishi Ichigokan Museum is hosting an exhibition with approximately 75 pieces of the Collection’s most treasured artworks. Among the highlights are all-time favourites by Claude Monet, Paul Cézanne, Edgar Degas, Paul Gauguin and Vincent van Gogh.

Gallery AaMo in Tokyo Dome City is setting up a very strange exhibition this year: the Museum of Bad Art. No, this isn't a collection of kindergarten finger-painting, but a serious (okay, not that serious) collection of the 'very best bad art' – art that's 'too bad to be ignored.' This special exhibit comes from a collection at the Museum of Bad Art in Boston where their tag line is 'The world's only museum dedicated to the collection, preservation, exhibition and celebration of bad art in all its forms'. Each piece is the collection has a weird charm to it – obviously bad but totally engaging, forcing the viewer's attention as they try to work out why this work is so bad. For some it's the subject, for others it's the drawing style. You really just have to see it to understand. Prepare to be amazed that a museum devoted to the exclusive purveyance of crappy art could be so delightful and engrossing.

KYOTOGRAPHIE is a highly-acclaimed international photography festival held annually in Kyoto and for the first time, it’s organising an offshoot event in Tokyo. For this special Tokyo edition, the most popular works from KYOTOGRAPHIE 2018 (the sixth year of the festival) will be exhibited in Tokyo.  Expect sensational works by the late Japanese photographer Masahisa Fukase who’s widely known for images depicting his domestic married life; celebrated French graphic designer-photographer Jean-Paul Goude; and contemporary Chinese photographer Liu Colin, who incorporates camouflage tricks into his arresting visuals. Catch the exhibitions at multiple locations, such as Fuji Film Square, Chanel Nexus Hall, and the Institut français du Japon.

Flemish artist Peter Paul Rubens (1577-1640) is widely known for his dramatic, highly charged paintings featuring Christian history and allegorical subjects. His unique style showcases a masterful handling of movement, colour and sensuality, and it has come to define the 17th century Baroque period in European art. You can get an up close look at his famous pieces at this exhibition, which brings together one of the largest displays of his works. There’s a particular focus on his relationship with Italy, where he lived intermittently for about eight years. And to add context, you’ll also find a selection of works by Italian artists of the same era.

This retrospective exhibition celebrates the work of iconic Norwegian painter Edvard Munch, most famous for his masterpiece ‘The Scream’. Munch's work was heavily influenced by Impressionists the likes of Claude Monet and Edouard Manet, and he became a part of the Post-Impressionist movement, which was led by Vincent Van Gogh and Paul Cezanne.  Munch did not receive much appreciation for his art in his time, but he was eventually hailed as a pioneer of Expressionism in the world of fine arts. Nearly 100 pieces of his work will be exhibited, including oil paintings and master prints courtesy of the Munch Museum in Oslo. While there are multiple versions of ‘The Scream’, this is the first time the version created with oil paint and tempera is being shown in Japan.  Explore 60-plus years’ worth of paintings depicting deep human emotions such as anxiety and loneliness, as well as stunning natural landscapes of Norway, and works from his final years which feature vibrant, pigmented colours.