Things to do in Tokyo this week

Tachikawa's Showa Kinen Park has the most impressive fields of cosmos flowers in the capital and this is the ideal time to see them all in full bloom. The hilly grasslands of the park are usually draped in colour from the middle of September with various types of cosmos flowers, and the multicoloured scenery can be enjoyed well into October.

There are four main gardens: The Lemon Bright field, which is covered in vivid yellow sulfur cosmos; Fall Bouquet Garden, which has a mixture of 20 different cosmos; the Akatsuki and Hinomaru cosmos field; and the Cosmos Sensation filled with lilac blooms. Treat yourself with some citrusy lemon soft-serve ice cream or a non-alcoholic lemon bright mojito.

Tokyo Biennale only comes around once every two years, but in between that time, the organisers and artists are in constant motion with open calls, fringe exhibitions and workshops. That said, the time has come and Tokyo Biennale has officially started on September 23, with events and programmes running until November 5 2023.

While initially planned for 2020, the Biennale's inaugural event was postponed to 2021 due to the pandemic. Now, for its second edition in 2023, the Biennale continues to uphold its international reputation by inviting an eclectic mix of artists and creators from around the world. 

Kinchakuda Manjushage Park in Saitama prefecture’s Hidaka city is one of the best places near Tokyo to see red spider lilies, also known as higanbana or manjushage in Japanese. With about five million of these unique flowers expected to bloom between September 16 and October 1 2023, the sprawling Saitama park will be bringing back its annual autumn flower festival.

Aside from fields of beautiful scarlet red spider lilies, you’ll also find booths at the festival selling a variety of local food and drinks as well as souvenirs.

If you’re looking to immerse in Japanese culture, visit Tokyo National Museum in Ueno Park to partake in a variety of traditional Japanese experiences. This sprawling institution holds a vast collection of Japan’s National Treasures, including the Okyokan, a well-preserved heritage house located on the north side of the museum grounds. This traditional dwelling was built in 1742 and later donated to the museum in 1933. It’s home to reproduced fusuma (vertical panels that act as sliding doors) murals by Maruyama Okyo, a famous Japanese painter during the Edo period (1603-1867).

This secluded part of the museum is usually closed to the public, but it’s now open for this special cultural event until January 28 2024. So take this opportunity to see this beautiful traditional Japanese house and participate in the daily workshops. Experiences include how to prepare matcha, how to wear kimono, zen breathing and bonsai growing. While walk-ins are welcome, it’s best to secure a spot in advance via the website. 

Okyokan also has a café and it’s open to everyone, even if you’re not here for the workshops. There are soba noodles, inari sushi and miso soup on the menu, along with Ichiro’s Malt Japanese Whisky, Aramasa sake, Choya Umeshu plum wine as well as classic Japanese desserts such as warabi mochi and wagashi.

While Okyokan is free to visit, you’ll need a ticket (adults ¥1,000, university students ¥500) to enter the Tokyo National Museum compound.

As the weather warms up, bars, hotels and even department stores in Tokyo are opening their roofs and terraces to the public – and with this, the beer garden season officially begins. As we say every year, it just wouldn't be spring and summer without an evening spent idly sipping frosty pints or cool cocktails out in the open air. 

But how do you, the discerning drinker, find the most attractive deals among the myriad of beer events and festivals out there? Fret not; we’ve done the leg work for you, so go ahead and choose from our list here.

The Immersive Museum reopened on July 7 following the success of its inaugural exhibition in 2022, which welcomed over 200,000 visitors for its mesmerising showcase of Monet’s Water Lilies. This time, the exhibition will feature digital renditions of roughly 80 masterpieces from the Post-Impressionist movement. 

Post-Impressionism diverged from its predecessor's preoccupation with the natural depiction of light and scenes. This era bore witness to artists such as George Seurat, Paul Cezanne, Paul Gauguin and Vincent Van Gogh, who ventured towards the unexplored realms of emotive colours, distinctive brushwork and symbolic themes. This shift significantly redirected the trajectory of visual art history.

Inside the museum, visitors can traverse through the transformative landscapes of these visionaries. Immerse in the pointillist precision of Seurat's 'A Sunday Afternoon on the Island of La Grande Jatte', the revolutionary bridging of Impressionism and Cubism in Cezanne's 'Mont Sainte-Victoire', the rich symbolism and bold hues of Gauguin's 'Vision After the Sermon', and the vibrant empathy and colour of Van Gogh's 'Starry Night' in a wholly new way.

Do note that the market will be cancelled in the case of rain.

Step into an enchanted digital forest in this collaborative exhibition between teamLab and Galaxy. Now in its third iteration, the interactive experience is based on the concept of catching different digital creatures to study them before releasing them back into their habitat. As it's a digital art experience, you'll be using an app on the Galaxy smartphone to collect different prehistoric animals in the mystical forest.

Be gentle when approaching these critters! If you try to touch them they might run and disappear into the forest. If you're lucky, they might become curious instead and turn towards you. Nevertheless, the exercise here is to point your phone camera at them, release a Study Arrow in their direction, and capture them onto your screen so that you can learn more about their nature.

You can also work together with other visitors and shepherd the dinosaurs projected on the floor. This allows you to then deploy the Study Net and capture them into your phone. Once you've done studying them, you can release them back into the space.

While the exhibit is free, reservations are required so as to avoid overcrowding the venue. Each session is an hour long, with the exhibition open from 11am until 7pm daily. You can book a timeslot as early as three days in advance via the event website.

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.

British artist David Hockney is set to unveil his first large-scale solo exhibition in Japan in 27 years this summer at the Museum of Contemporary Art, Tokyo. The artist, who is regarded as one of the most versatile artists of our time, has spent the last 60 years of his career producing paintings, drawings, prints, photographs and even digital art to explore nature, landscapes, and human relationships.

This upcoming showcase will feature more than 100 of Hockey’s works, making it the artist’s most comprehensive exhibition ever held in Japan. Works will range from his early masterpieces painted on the west coast of the United States in the 1960s to a series of large-scale paintings created during the Covid-19 lockdown in Normandy, northern France.

The exhibition features 130 stunning pieces of French Impressionist and Post-Impressionist art from the Matsuoka Collection, such as Monet and Renoir. Installations will include Renoir's delicate pastel painting 'Portrait of Lucien Daudet' and Monet's early masterpiece 'Cliffs at Sainte-Adresse'. Additionally, visitors can appreciate works from Post-Impressionist artists like Paul Signac, Henri Martin and Henri-Edmond Cross. 

In conjunction with this exhibition, there is also a special focus on antique ceramics in 'Ceramics of the Edo Period: Old Imari'. Here you can explore the permanent collection, which includes ancient Roman sculptures, ancient Egyptian art, and modern sculptures by artists such as Henry Moore.

This Yves Saint Laurent retrospective coming to The National Art Center next autumn is the only appropriate follow-up to the Christian Dior exhibition opening this winter. Though he was only 21 years old when he was catapulted to the top of the French couture industry as head designer of the Dior fashion house, Saint Laurent went on to become one of the greatest visionaries of 20th century fashion. 

This is the first time an official Saint Laurent retrospective is being staged in fashion-frenzied Tokyo, so you can expect a lot from the momentous collaboration with the Musée Yves Saint Laurent Paris. There will be roughly 110 pieces to see, including garments like the 1965 Mondrian dresses, accessories, sketches and photographs of the designer at work. The exhibition will launch on September 20 2023 and run through December 11 2023.  

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.