There is a sense of adventure when approaching the unassuming Etoile Kaito Living Building in Tokyo’s Bakurocho, in Chuo Ward, and heading down the back alleys toward a single signboard that reads “Tokyo Biennale.”
The wholesaler building is one of the Biennale’s two main venues alongside Toeizan Kanei Temple in Ueno. They are the only ticketed venues, with most other artworks in the program placed mural-like around central Tokyo and viewable for free, until the biennale’s end on Dec. 14.
The Tokyo Biennale has been held sporadically and under slightly different names as an exhibition since the 1950s, with the most recent iteration relaunched in earnest in 2021. This year is its most ambitious yet, with 39 participating artists from Japan and abroad creating under the theme “Wander for Wonder,” encouraging visitors to stroll around Tokyo neighborhoods including the aforementioned Nihonbashi and Ueno, as well as Kanda and Suidobashi, to name a few more locations.
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