About The "Aida Makoto: Heisei Kanjin Project"

The "Aida Makoto: Heisei Kanjin Project" is a project utilizing the internet where individual supporters will have the opportunity to enjoy a closer and more active relationship with the artist and the museum than that traditionally enjoyed by audiences.

There are two support categories (both paid) of this Project.
Supporters participating in the project will be able to enjoy special privileges and entitlements, such as receiving invitations to community meet-ups, complimentary tickets to the exhibition, and limited edition artwork Aida Makoto created solely for this project.
In addition, Aida Makoto's Facebook Page posts latest information and updates on the artist's activities and his solo exhibition at the Mori Art Museum. It also enables supporters of the artist to communicate with other supporters.

About the "Aida Makoto: Heisei Kanjin Project" (11:45 mins)

The Videos from the "Aida Makoto" Exhibition Pre-Event: "The World of Aida Makoto"

The "Aida Makoto: Heisei Kanjin Project"

In conjunction with Aida Makoto's solo exhibition (17 November, 2012  31 March, 2013), the Mori Art Museum launches the "Aida Makoto: Heisei Kanjin Project," in which individual supporters will be invited to join in producing the exhibition.
During the medieval period, the custom of kanjin, or the soliciting of contributions for pious purposes, became increasingly widespread as a means of raising funds for the construction or repair of Buddhist temples, Buddhist images, temple buildings, and so on. Today, nearly a thousand years later, as seen in the Arab Spring and the Occupy movement in the U.S., for example, we are entering a new era where groups of like-minded individuals often connected via social media are bringing about changes in authoritarian regimes.
Aida Makoto is an artist who for some 20 years has been carefully observing the society in which he lives and exposing with a critical spirit and from a highly satirical point of view truths that are often hidden in our subconscious. However, due to the nature of his artwork, he is also an artist who, while rated highly, has been slow to receive public recognition internationally or in the form of large-scale solo exhibitions. At the same time, he has over 10,000 followers on Twitter, indicating that his activities and attitude towards society have gained vociferous support. "Aida Makoto," his first large-scale solo exhibition at an art museum, will present an overview of Aida's creative output, including several new works, as well as closely analyzing its social and art historical context.
To coincide with this exhibition, we will be launching the "Aida Makoto: Heisei Kanjin Project," in which people who endorse Aida's artistic activities as individuals will be asked to make financial contributions to help cover the cost of producing the exhibition. This method of asking a group of like-minded individuals to provide the kind of exhibition sponsorship usually requested of corporations and so on is a new initiative in terms of art museum fundraising, although one could say that Aida Makoto is one artist who is truly suited to the implementation of such an initiative.
We urge exhibition-goers to consider going a step further and supporting a particular artist they would like to see succeed by participating in the "Aida Makoto: Heisei Kanjin Project." In this way, we can all work together to ensure the exhibition is a roaring success.

Kataoka Mami
Chief Curator, Mori Art Museum,
"Aida Makoto" Exhibition Curator

Kataoka Mami Photo: Jennifer Yin

After conducting research on cultural policy, urban development and arts projects as part of an independent think tank, Kataoka joined Tokyo Opera City Art Gallery as Chief Curator in 1997. She has been with the Mori Art Museum since 2003. She served concurrently as an international curator at the Hayward Gallery in London from 2007 through 2009, and in 2012 will be acting as guest curator at the Asian Art Museum in San Francisco and co-artistic director of the 9th Gwangju Biennale.