When I was a little girl my favorite book was ‘From The Mixed Up Files Of Mrs. Basil E. Frankweiler’. I can’t say why but I did love that these two runaway kids went to live in the Metropolitan Museum. Well, if you take a question from them and run away to a museum I am going to suggest the Japan Society. Its small, but soothing with a fountain and indoor Japanese Rock Garden. But the clincher is.. Heated toilet seat, with ( tho i didn’t test it) a full bidet. Really, a heated toilet seat… how very lovely on a cold winter day.
I have known about the Japan Society for years but never was moved to check it out. Today I was feeling like staying without plan and close to home. I had a manicure and needed a walk so realizing that I was 10 blocks from the museum I headed over. Luckily they accepted my museum pass as admission is about $12 which is high for a walk through 2 small galleries.
From the Societies web page – This fall, join us for the first NY institutional solo exhibition of one of Japan’s most prolific and versatile contemporary artists, Yasumasa Morimura. Ego Obscura highlights Morimura’s 30-year-long project of excavating “the self” from layers of art history, Japanese postwar history, and personal history.
In addition to major photographic self-portraits, for which Morimura transformed himself into iconic artistic and pop culture figures, the exhibition will also feature the U.S. premiere of the artist’s first full-length video work, Egó Sympósion (2016) and his latest cinematic installation Egó Obscura (2018), in conjunction with a live performance, Morimura’s Nippon Cha Cha Cha!, staged by the artist on the opening weekend.
So that’s what it was. Its often more interesting to walk into an exhibit blank, especially if you have the time to go back if it catches your interest. I dont know yet if I will return but i might. Walking into the first gallery I recognized a number of the paintings he lifted from other artists. As per usual I dont know why he is doing what he is doing or why because of what he does he has become a recognized artist but i try to withhold judgement if I can..
On my first walk through the next room had a movie going, then the next was a piece I was familiar with… Olympia
The last room had another movie where the artist was hollering ike Hirohito. With an hour to kill I went back to room two and sat in the mini theatre and watched. I would give it a B for interesting and a D for too long. Murimora had created a movie where he sat the artists who were his subjects at the table of the last supper then he took on the personality of each of them, except for one, who disappeared himself. Wish I could remember more. There was Rembrandt, and a person we think was DaVinci and of course Warhol.