Riekeles Gallery and Tchoban Foundation
have the pleasure to present the exhibition:
The Architecture of Neo Tokyo
4 June – 4 September 2022
Tchoban Foundation. Museum for Architectural Drawing
Berlin, Germany
The exhibition
AKIRA – The Architecture of Neo Tokyo presents the original background artwork of the classic science-fiction animation in an unprecedented exhibition.
Since its release in 1988 AKIRA was almost solely responsible for the boom in Japanese animation (anime) among an international audience during the early 1990s. For many viewers AKIRA was the first film that they perceived as anime – as specifically Japanese animation. As such, it had a tremendous influence on a whole generation of film enthusiasts. Much of AKIRA’s cinematic power stems from the opulent representation of the film’s iconic city of Neo Tokyo.
59 original production backgrounds, layout drawings, concept designs and image boards which had been used to create Neo Tokyo in the animated feature will be on display.
Exclusive access to the studio archives of the artists involved in AKIRA’s production allows the presentation of artworks that have never been shown outside of Japan and only very few of them have ever been published. The exhibition includes works by Toshiharu Mizutani who served as the production’s art director and his colleagues Katsufumi Hariu, Norihiro Hiraki, Shinji Kimura, Satoshi Kuroda, Hiromasa Ogura, Hiroshi Ōno, Hajime Soga, Tsutomu Uchida und Takashi Watabe.
The exhibition is curated by Stefan Riekeles, Managing Director of the Riekeles Gallery, in collaboration with Nadejda Bartels, Director of Tchoban Foundation. Hiroko Myokam of Eizo Workshop (Japan) is co-curator of the show.
Hiroshi Ohno, Toshiharu Mizutani and Katsufumi Hariu at Studio Fuga, Tokyo, Japan in Dec. 2021. Photo by Yasuyuki Takagi.
All photographs of the exhibition by Nadja Fedorova courtesy of Tchoban Foundation, 2022.
Video tour with curator Stefan Riekeles
Episode 1:
The iconic background for AKIRA’s opening sequence, cut no. 1.
Episode 2:
Imageboard and background for the motorcycle chase scene.
Episode 3:
Tracking shot of the high-security research building.
Episode 4:
The layer structure of the last background, cut no. 2211.
Episode 5:
Why the background for cut no. 182 is an outstanding piece.
All videos by © Annika Paetsch, 2022. Courtesy of Tchoban Foundation.
Solegraph edition & posters
Selected artwork is available as high-end solegraph reproductions and poster prints.
Venue & previous exhibitions
Installation view of the exhibition Anime Architecture, Tchoban Foundation, 2016 July 23 - October 16). Photo by Gianni Plescia.
Tchoban Foundation. Museum for Architectural Drawing (https://www.tchoban-foundation.de) sees its mission in promoting the world of architectural drawing to a broader audience. Works of architects such as Peter Cook, Thom Mayne, Alvaro Siza or Lebbeus Woods have been shown in profound exhibitions at the museum in Berlin. In 2016, the exhibition Anime Architecture presented the background art of Ghost in the Shell (1995), Patlabor - The Movie (1989) and Metropolis (2001), curated by Stefan Riekeles in collaboration with Nadejda Bartels and co-curated by Hiroko Myokam.
After its premiere at the Tchoban Foundation the exhibition Anime Architecture traveled to House of Illustration, London, UK (2017 May 27 - September 10), Japan Foundation, Sydney, Australia (2018 June 1 – August 11), Gosford Regional Gallery, Gosford, Australia (2019 March 30 - May 19), Morikami Museum and Japanese Gardens, Delray Beach, Florida, USA (2019 November 9 – 2020 April 3).
AKIRA – The Architecture of Neo Tokyo will continue this line of programming.
Visitor information
Tchoban Foundation. Museum for Architectural Drawing
Christinenstraße 18a, 10119 Berlin
Exhibition dates:
4 June – 4 September 2022
Opening hours:
Mon. – Fri.: 2 – 7 pm,
Sat. – Sun.: 1 – 5 pm
Exhibition opening:
3 June 2022, at 7 pm
Admission:
6 EUR, 4 EUR (reduced)
The museum is wheelchair accessible.
Copyright for all images except stated otherwise:
Based on the graphic novel “AKIRA” by Katsuhiro Otomo. First published by “Young Magazine”, Kodansha Ltd.
© 1988 MASH • ROOM / AKIRA COMMITTEE All Rights Reserved.