Before I begin, I must admit I am not a huge fan of, nor knowledgeable about art or art history. I was terrible at arts and crafts in school and spent most of my time spreading then removing glue from my hands rather than creating anything. Painting, drawing, paper-mâché were all things I had no interest in and trips to the art gallery or museums were something I didn’t look forward to.
That being said, I do get impressed when I see giant murals on walls, experience ceiling-wide scapes or come across paintings which tell a story with colors and people. And Illusion-ism has always interested me. The colors, angles, and effects that they create. I am amazed and how something 2D can seem to leap out at you as if it was alive.
It still amazes me how certain art techniques can play with the senses and trick you into believing the painting is alive. Which is why, the trick art museum was quite interesting for me.
And although “trick art” has been around for centuries, the modern phrase trick art and it’s new and mainstream museum is created and owned by Japanese creator Kazumune Kenjyu. He and his company SD Corporation own and run 17 trick art museums across Japan. I was able to visit their museum Tokyo Trick Art Museum in Odaiba, Tokyo.
The theme of this trick art museum is Edo Period of Japan. They offer the “vividness of gorgeous Edo” of 300 years ago with Japanese architecture, city and room designs and characters. There are ninjas, sumo wrestlers and a variety of interesting Japanese monsters and creatures.
The optical illusions created by viewing the art really messes with your senses. The best part is the interactivity though. Each painting or artwork is created and designed to allow viewers to bring themselves into the art and become part of the wacky scenario. Standing, sitting or sometimes lying at the right angle creates an illusion that once captured by a camera transforms the 2D seen by the eyes into a 3D wonder when seen through the camera lens.
I was surprised at how detailed and realistic everything looks once I saw the final product. For example, sitting behind this wooden slat and looking at the floor I didn’t know what exactly I was supposed to be experiencing. My mind couldn’t wrap around the drawings or angles and it didn’t hit me how amazing this art was until I saw it through my camera display. Then I was blown away. It looked like I was in a floating box above a giant forest like Aladdin.
Whether you are a child, a senior, into art or history, this place is sure to have something that makes you laugh, smile or ooh in amazement.
The museum is like a winding maze and there is always something interesting around every corner.
There are even secret doors that lead to rooms with fantastical creatures and spirits.
The only complaint I had about this concept was the space. I went on a Monday so it wasn’t very busy but it was still tight and cramped making it hard to capture some of the art with the right angle. Also, a guide on the floor to help people find the right place to stand when taking a picture might have avoided the confusion and congestion of people standing around.
Some of my favorite parts of the museum have to be the table with the head in a box (I was lucky enough to get a really cute girl who was also visiting to be my decapitated head). I also really liked the shark, the vampire and the room where one person look bigger than the other.
To see a better example of some of the cool effects of the museum watch my video!
Although there are trick art places around the world, I liked that this one did focus on the Edo Period of Japan appealing to not only people who are looking for something fun to do on a rainy day but also those who enjoy ancient Japanese history.
If you are in Tokyo on a cold or rainy day and want to do something interesting indoors that is fun and cheap, this might be the place for you. Admission was only 1000 yen (about $10) and there is no time limit so you can stay as long as you want. The place is open from 11 am to 9 pm.
Check out their website for more information and gallery of art.
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