Multiple Self-portraits
Special Feature NAKANISHI Natsuyuki IKEUCHI Akiko: Arc and Catenary

2025 marks 30 years of the Museum of Contemporary Art Tokyo. The MOT collection now consists of approximately 6000 works ranging from modern to contemporary, with an emphasis on postwar art. This exhibition is made up of two displays that shed light on the endeavors of artists in the collection, primarily focusing on recently added works.

On the 1st floor, “Multiple Self Portraits” offers a multidimensional survey of images related to multiple selves, depicted via art masterpieces, history, and everyday life. Exhibits include a special display, incorporating loan items, featuring three artists: MORIMURA Yasumasa, plus YUASA Ebosi, who produces work under the guise of a fictitious painter; and MATSUI Erina, who views self-portraits, including some weird and wonderful faces, as a tool for communication. The new acquisitions from Yuasa and Matsui will have their first showing here, and the space will also present works from other artists such as MIYAGI Futoshi, YOKOYAMA Yuichi, KAIHATSU Yoshiaki, TOYOSHIMA Yasuko, KWAK Duck Jun, and Andy WARHOL.

On the 3rd floor is “Special Feature NAKANISHI Natsuyuki, IKEUCHI Akiko: Arc and Catenary,” an introduction to the artistic realms of the eponymous artists. Nakanishi, who was the first Japanese artist to stage a solo show at the museum, and Ikeuchi, known for her installations using silk thread, both make works that originate in their own bodies in the here and now, yet possess an expansiveness hinting at a realm beyond those physical limits. Ikeuchi will also create a new work on-site to mix with a display of new acquisitions from both artists, allowing visitors to experience the resonance between different works on display.

Artists

IKEUCHI Akiko, KAIHATSU Yoshiaki, KWAK Duck Jun, TOYOSHIMA Yasuko, MATSUI Erina, MINAMIKAWA Shimon, MIYAGI Futoshi, MORIMURA Yasumasa, YUASA Ebosi, YOKOYAMA Yuichi, Andy WARHOL, and others.

Highlights

• On the 1st floor, an eclectic range of works by artists in the museum’s collection, selected with the traditional framework of the self-portrait in mind.
• A special display, including loan works, featuring three artists: MORIMURA Yasumasa, plus new additions MATSUI Erina and YUASA Ebosi. A first collection show outing also for works by YOKOYAMA Yuichi, MIYAGI Futoshi, KAIHATSU Yoshiaki and others.
• A special exhibit by NAKANISHI Natsuyuki and IKEUCHI Akiko on the 3rd floor offering an immersive, resonant experience of works by the two, including a number on display for the first time.
• Paintings by NAKANISHI Natsuyuki from around 1960 to his final years; a mix of new acquisitions and works on loan. 2026 marks a decade since the artist’s death, and this is an excellent opportunity to revisit his career.
• Known for installations that use silk thread to give visual expression to the invisible forces of nature, movement and expansion in spaces, IKEUCHI Akiko makes her collection show debut here, primarily with new work created on-site.