Artwork | Tokyo Midtown

Artwork Concept

Toshio Shimizu and Jean-Hubert Martin - These two art directors have selected globally recognized artists to produce works. They propose a new relationship between the city and art while comparing the whole of Tokyo Midtown to a garden where diversified cultures come together. The two main artistic features are Ishinki and Myomu, created by Kan Yasuda, a sculptor based in Italy. These works gently welcome visitors to Tokyo Midtown.
With the dawn of the 21st century, art emerged as one of the most important elements of a city. Art not only makes a city more beautiful; it also brings new life to a city by working on the people's mind in many ways.
The artworks at Tokyo Midtown exemplify this new relationship between art and city.
The art project at Tokyo Midtown was undertaken with close collaboration among all involved, including the art directors, artists, client, architect, landscape architect and interior designer. The result was an environment in which art has been integrated into the architecture, and harmonized with the functions of the town and the garden.

Art Director

Toshio Shimizu

Art critic. Professor at Gakushuin Women's College. Director of Toshio Shimizu Art Office. Born in Tokyo in 1953. Completed a master's degree at École de Louvre after graduating from Tokyo Metropolitan University. Works as a curator at Tokyo Metropolitan Teien Art Museum and as an artistic director at Contemporary Art Center, Art Tower Mito. His most recent engagements have focused on producing exhibitions and public art.

1953	Born in Tokyo.
1975	CCFS (Cours de Civilisation Française de la Sorbonne)
1977	Graduated with a degree in French Language and Literature at the Faculty of Humanities, Tokyo Metropolitan University.
1983	Completed a master's degree at École de Louvre.
1985～1991	Curator of Tokyo Metropolitan Teien Art Museum
1991～1997	Artistic Director of Contemporary Art Center, Art Tower Mito
1997～2002	President of Toshio Shimizu Independent Curator Office
1999	Advisor of Museo d'Arte Ghibli Co., Ltd. (Ghibli Museum, Mitaka)
2002～	Director of Toshio Shimizu Art Office, Inc.
1998～2003	Lecturer at Tokyo Zokei University Lecturer at Meiji Gakuin University Lecturer at Gakushuin Women's College Lecturer at Tokyo University
2004～	Professor at Gakushuin Women's College

(As of March 2007)

The major curation/coordination in the past exhibitions

1988：: Leonard Foujita Exposition (Tokyo Metropolitan Teien Art Museum)
1992：: Robert Mapplethorpe (Art Tower Mito, Tokyo Metropolitan Teien Art Museum and more)
1995：: James Turrel (Art Tower Mito)
1996：: Daniel Buren (Art Tower Mito)
2000：: Shanghai Biennale (Shanghai Art Museum)
2002：: The Cremaster Cycle by Matthew Barney (Cinema Rise in Shibuya and more)
2006：: Two Mountains - Naoya Hatakeyama and Blathasar Burkhard - (Tokyo Art Museum)

Jean-Hubert Martin

Curator. Born in Strasbourg, France in 1944. Graduated from Sorbonne University (art history). Director of key art museums in Europe, including The Museum, Centre Pompidou; Kunsthalle Bern; Musée National des Arts d'Afrique et d'Océanie; and Museum Kunst Palast. Curates the most important exhibitions in art history, such as Magiciens de la Terre.

1944	Born in Strasbourg, France.
1968	Graduated from Sorbonne University (studies of art history) (Paris, France)
1971～1977	Curator of Musée d'Art Moderne de la Ville de Paris
1977～1982	Curator of The Museum, Centre Pompidou (Paris, France)
1982～1985	Director of Kunsthalle Bern (Bern, Switzerland)
1987～1990	Director of The Museum, Centre Pompidou
1991～1995	Art Director at Art Center, Château de Oilon (Poitou, France)
1994～1999	Director at Musée National des Arts d'Afrique et d'Océanie (Paris, France)
1997	International Committee at Center for Contemporary Art (CCA), Kitakyushu
2000～2006	Director at Museum Kunst Palast (Dusseldorf, Germany)