I have always liked Shinro Ohtake, but to be honest, I had never quite thought “I love his work!” — until now. Seeing this exhibition changed everything, and my feelings turned into a firm “This is SO good!!!” Shinro Ohtake: Retina at the Marugame Genichiro-Inokuma Museum of Contemporary Art — I am so glad I went. As always, today was the best.
MIMOCA and the Retina Exhibition
The Marugame Genichiro-Inokuma Museum of Contemporary Art (MIMOCA) stands right in front of JR Marugame Station. It was designed by Yoshio Taniguchi, and the elegant facade that appears the moment you step out of the station is irresistible if you love Taniguchi’s architecture. The kind of building that makes you go “I love this” on sight.
Shinro Ohtake: Retina was his first solo exhibition at MIMOCA in twelve years, since NEWNEW in 2013. With more than 300 works and materials on display, it was reportedly the largest exhibition in the museum’s history. There simply was not enough time, no matter how much you had.
The Anpanman Train and Bone-in Chicken
I travelled to Marugame on the Anpanman train. That might sound like a special occasion, but these trains are a common sight on JR Shikoku, so I actually ride them quite casually (haha). Still, when one pulls into the platform, it makes me a little happy, and yes, I make sure to take photos.
For lunch, I had Marugame’s famous honetsukidori, bone-in grilled chicken, at Ikkaku, choosing the hinadori, or young chicken. Spicy, punchy seasoning; picking it up with your hands and biting straight in is the way to go.
Drowning in Dub-Hei & New Chanel
The piece that radiated presence in the gallery was Dub-Hei & New Chanel, an unmanned, remote-controlled band built from scrap. I was able to examine the details closely before it started moving, and there was so much to see. As I kept peering at the details, the sheer amount of information became overwhelming, to the point in which I no longer knew what I was looking at. I was drowning in it.
The Retina Series, and My Favourite Piece
The sight of those large works lined up in a row was absolutely stunning. The drawings were lovely too, and the large framed works drew me in so completely that I only realised afterwards I had forgotten to take photos of them.
My favourite was a small piece with a three-dimensional form set inside a frame. I could have gazed at it forever.
Final Thoughts
To be honest, the museum was not crowded at all. It was such a wonderful exhibition; I really wish more people had gone.
The museum shop was packed with original goods, including New Chanel T-shirts, but I did not buy anything this time. You know how it is: when there are too many things to choose from, you agonise so much you end up buying nothing at all.
