New Exhibition at WHAT MUSEUM, Tennoz, Tokyo: Featuring Contemporary Art Collection of Japanese Entrepreneur Takafumi Takahashi

(Tokyo, Japan) The Collectors’ Museum of Contemporary Art, WHAT MUSEUM, operated by Warehouse TERRADA, is currently holding T2 Collection “Collecting? Connecting?” Exhibition until March 16th (Sun), 2025.

This exhibition showcases 36 artworks, including the first piece that Takafumi Takahashi purchased as an art collector, as well as conceptual pieces that have captivated him in recent years.

(Image above) WHAT MUSEUM Exhibition View, T2 Collection “Collecting? Connecting?”, Photo by Keizo KIOKU

This exhibition features the T2 Collection, collected by Takafumi Takahashi over the past six years. Takahashi is a renowned figure in the field of Big Data and AI. The T2 Collection “Collecting? Connecting?” Exhibition showcases 36 artworks, including a Bernard Frize work, which Takahashi acquired when he began collecting, and conceptual works by artists such as Tatsuo Miyajima, Kohei Nawa, and Reijiro Wada, which have captivated him in recent years.

WHAT MUSEUM Exhibition View, T2 Collection “Collecting? Connecting?”, Photo by Keizo KIOKU

Contemporary art serves as a medium for present-day artists to express their messages on themes such as society, art, culture, and politics in various forms. Living in the same era, we can discover connections to ourselves and gain new perspectives through engaging with these works.

Takahashi began his journey in art collecting by finding common ground between artists and entrepreneurs, recognizing that both challenge the world with their unique concepts and visions. He is particularly enthusiastic about acquiring works from artists who embrace new challenges, as well as those by emerging artists. Through this journey, he has cultivated a vibrant community of artists, collectors, and people involved in the art world. He finds joy not only in collecting artworks but also in connecting with a diverse community of people, values, and perspectives. Reflecting on his experience, Takahashi observes that the connections between each of these individual dots can unexpectedly form meaningful constellations, like stars in the sky.

This exhibition offers visitors the opportunity to interpret the artworks’ messages from their perspective, relate them to their personal thoughts and values, and experience how individual “dots” connect with various other “dots.”

WHAT MUSEUM Exhibition View, T2 Collection “Collecting? Connecting?”, Photo by Keizo KIOKU

– Collector’s Note by Takafumi Takahashi

An encounter with an art piece.

Sometimes it instantly captivates me, and other times, it begins with a “?” and ends with an “a-ha” moment once I hear its backstory.

Ultimately, I am left with a sense of awe, marveling, “What an incredible creation.” What I have is genuine respect for the artist’s sensibility, knowledge, creativity, craftsmanship, action-oriented approach, and, above all, passion.

As I sought out such artworks one by one, I inadvertently gained the label of a “collector,” even though it was never my intention to build a “collection.” Encountering one art piece, one artist, led to encountering another. Delighting in and embracing this series of moments, it has evolved into this exhibition.

Due to the nature of these pieces, the staff at Warehouse TERRADA has put a tremendous amount of effort into the selection and curation process. My deepest appreciation goes to them. Nonetheless, this remains an eclectic collection of art pieces—I encourage you to leisurely explore each piece individually as you encounter them.

It would be a privilege if you could experience even one encounter that resonates with you, as it will be the newest addition to the successive moments of connection between us and the artworks.

[Overview of the Exhibition]

Title: T2 Collection “Collecting? Connecting?”

Dates: October 4th (Fri), 2024 – March 16th (Sun), 2025

Venue: SPACE 1, 1st floor, and 2nd floor at WHAT MUSEUM (Warehouse TERRADA G Building 2-6-10 Higashi-Shinagawa, Shinagawa-ku, Tokyo 140-0002)

Open Hours: Tuesday – Sunday, 11:00 AM – 6:00 PM (Admission until 5:00 PM)

Closed on: Mondays (but open when Monday is a public holiday, then closed the following Tuesday), and New Year’s holidays

Admission: Adults 1,500 yen / University or vocational college students 800 yen / Students under high school age Free

* Including the admission for the concurrent exhibition: Akihito Okunaka “Synesthesia -Crossing the senses with art-”

* Advance reservation by online ticketing is available

* Re-entry tickets valid during the exhibition are on sale

Exhibition Passport 2,500 yen (This exhibition and its concurrent exhibition are available)

Organizing: WHAT MUSEUM

Planning: WHAT MUSEUM

Special Cooperation: Takafumi Takahashi

URL: https://what.warehouseofart.org/en/exhibitions/t2-collection_en

[Exhibited artists] (in alphabetical order)

Darren Almond, Josh Brand, Alex Da Corte, Etsu Egami, Bernard Frize, Kenryou Gu, Nana Hirose & Kazuma Nagatani, Satoshi Hirose, Nir Hod, Candida Höfer, Masakazu Horiuti, Yojiro Imasaka, Teppei Kaneuji, Kengo Kito, Masato Kobayashi, Hayato Koga, Shōei Matsuda, Tomokazu Matsuyama, Barry McGee, Tatsuo Miyajima, Ayami Nagata, Kohei Nawa, Daiki Nishimura, Yoshinori Niwa, Sopheap Pich, Yoshio Shirakawa, Ryan Sullivan, Chika Suzuki, Hiroshi Takizawa, Reijiro Wada, and yang02

[Highlights]

– The first public exhibition of Takafumi Takahashi’s private collection

This exhibition is the first occasion to showcase Takafumi Takahashi’s collection, the T2 Collection, to the public. It illustrates the story of the past and future vision of Takahashi’s collection, which was amassed for six years since he stepped into the world of contemporary art. Takahashi has expressed his desire to help provide a supportive environment for artists from a broader perspective, and in recent years he has extended his efforts from acquiring artworks to supporting the development of new curators and art critics. Depending on the direction of such initiatives, this large-scale exhibition may be the first and the last of its kind.

– The unexpected perspectives of conceptual art

Conceptual art may seem difficult to understand at first glance. Some of the exhibited work feature materials and tools that we usually see in our daily lives, presented in unexpected ways. Through the composition of the exhibition and interpretations, visitors can engage with each artwork one by one and appreciate the artists’ perspectives and ideas.

– Artwork integrating concepts of cameras and photography

One of the exhibition spaces showcases artworks that incorporate familiar concepts of cameras and photography. This provides visitors with the opportunity to observe how contemporary artists have skillfully integrated advancing technologies and the evolving roles of cameras and photography into their expressions.

– The exhibition design linked to the exhibited work

Takahashi values interacting with diverse ideas and perspectives through engagement with artworks, artists, and the art community. This exhibition provides an opportunity for visitors to link their own thoughts and values to the artworks and to feel a connection with the art and artists living in the same era.

WHAT MUSEUM Exhibition View, T2 Collection “Collecting? Connecting?”, Photo by Keizo KIOKU

[About Takafumi Takahashi]

Co-founder and chairman of BrainPad Inc. / Chairman of the Board, President of The Japan Data Scientist Society

After completing a master’s degree at the Keio University Graduate School of Media and Governance, Takahashi worked for a foreign computer company before becoming an entrepreneur in 2000. His second company, BrainPad, promotes the use of big data and AI.

Takahashi has since been involved in various initiatives that promote data utilization in Japan.

He began collecting contemporary art in 2018 at the recommendation of a friend, and it has brought him a great source of joy. He founded and is currently the head of a contemporary art club within EO, a collective of entrepreneurs, to share the joy of collecting art and increase the number of young collectors.

Takahashi is also an active participant in projects working to solve issues in the contemporary art world, including his involvement in the Japan branch of the National Museum of Women in the Arts (NMWA) in the U.S., an institution fighting for gender equality in the art world.

[Audio Guides]

By downloading the official WHAT MUSEUM app, visitors can use the audio guide when visiting the museum. (Free)

[Concurrent Exhibition]

Akihito Okunaka “Synesthesia –Crossing the senses with art–”

URL: https://what.warehouseofart.org/en/exhibitions/synesthesia_en

[Video Interviews with Exhibiting Artists]

Interviews with artists whose works are/were featured in the exhibition will be available in our WHAT ARTIST INTERVIEW series via the official WHAT MUSEUM YouTube channel. Interviews related to this exhibition will be released sequentially.

WHAT MUSEUM Official YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/c/WHATMUSEUM

[About WHAT MUSEUM] https://what.warehouseofart.org

WHAT MUSEUM opened in Tennoz, Tokyo in December 2020. The Museum’s core work is to make the precious works of art properties that collectors and artists have entrusted to us accessible to the public. We have used our unique insight as a warehousing company to explore the concept of what an art facility should be. The result is to open up the warehouse to offer the public a look at art that they would not ordinarily have the opportunity to see. The museum exhibits works by artists active in the contemporary art scene side-by-side with the thoughts of the collectors as well as the artists, offering an innovative space for the appreciation of art. The name of WHAT (WAREHOUSE OF ART TERRADA) implies the cultural value which is gleaming quietly in the warehouse, and the museum exhibits two- and three-dimensional works as well as architectural models, photographs, movies, literature and installations. We plan and exhibit these diversified arts and cultures in our individual style of a museum as a warehouse company in new and unique approaches.

[About Warehouse TERRADA]

Established in 1950 and located in Tennoz, Tokyo, Warehouse TERRADA has developed dedicated storage services for highly specialized items such as artworks, wine, media, and confidential documents. In particular, the art storage service, first launched in 1975, has expanded into artwork restoration, transportation, exhibitions, and other related solutions, all available in one-stop. In 2014, we began operating a bonded warehouse for artworks. In 2022, we launched a new space that functions as a permanent gallery venue allowing for viewings, storage, and more under bonded conditions, aiming to further invigorate art distribution. We also operate art studios available for rent and host the TERRADA ART AWARD, supporting emerging artists. These initiatives earned us the Montblanc de la Culture Arts Patronage Award in 2018. In recent years, Warehouse TERRADA has opened several facilities that promote art and culture, including the collectors’ museum of contemporary art WHAT MUSEUM, art gallery cafe WHAT CAFE, art materials lab PIGMENT TOKYO and TERRADA ART COMPLEX, one of Japan’s largest gallery complexes. Through these broad-ranging art industry operations, and as a leading company in the Japanese art world, we provide services that contribute to revitalizing the art market and developing Tennoz into the world’s most exciting art capital.