Press

　

　

Art Collaboration Kyoto will take place from October 28–30, 2023
in the Kyoto International Conference Center
　

(Kyoto, Japan, August 28, 2023) – Art Collaboration Kyoto (ACK) announces further details for its 2023 edition, including the curatorial vision and artwork highlights for its Public Program in the main venue; dynamic conversation topics and leading panel participants for ACK Talks; special projects and exhibitions extending beyond the Kyoto International Conference Center (ICC Kyoto) and across the city of Kyoto in the fair’s Associated Programs; enriching, participatory events hosted through ACK Kids’ Programs, tethered to ACK’s mission of cultivating the future of the art world within Japan and beyond; and Special Programs hosted in collaboration with partner companies, providing new perspectives on art. Art Collaboration Kyoto will take place from October 28–30, 2023, with a VIP preview day on October 27, 2023, in the ICC Kyoto.
　

This year’s fair will be presented with the curatorial theme, titled “Visions of a Torn World: Circulation and Coexistence”, set by ACK’s Program Director Yukako Yamashita. Stemming from the title of the English translation of Hojoki, one of Japan’s three most famous literary works written about 800 years ago, “Visions of a Torn World” examines survival and perseverance in a world emerging from division and hardships. Acting as a common thread through ACK’s various programs, including ACK’s Public Program, ACK Talks, and ACK Kids’ Programs, the curatorial theme is reflected in both art and talks programs to provoke greater thought towards the future of today’s society.
　

Yukako Yamashita, ACK’s Program Director, said, “Through ‘Visions of a Torn World: Circulation and Coexistence,’ ACK will reflect on the times in which we now live and will develop through a wide array of artworks throughout the fair and in the rich cultural landscape of Kyoto. There is a Zen saying, ‘No pine has two colors, old and new; The bamboo’s knot marks up and down.’ This phrase expresses potential for a society where equality and difference coexist. People’s positions, ways of being, and ways of thinking are in flux, constantly changing and metamorphosing with the flow of the times. In a society and environment shaped in this way, it is important to understand the differences between us, to stop, think, and discuss, and to encourage a cycle that moves us in the right direction.”

Public Program

ACK’s Public Program will survey works selected by Guest Curator Greg Dvorak. Responding to the fair’s curatorial theme “Visions of a Torn World: Circulation and Coexistence,” the program theme “Beyond Glitch: Remapping Reality in a Broken World” examines recent crises of human and planetary health that urge society to embrace discomfort and perspectives which challenge the status quo. The Public Program will feature works by Ishu Han, Ken + Julia Yonetani, Kaz Oshiro, Shota Yamauchi and more.

Greg Dvorak, Guest Curator of the Public Program at ACK, shared, “The breakdown of systems and structures used to instill order in daily life has provoked a unique and shared discomfort experienced across the globe, highlighting their glitches in adequacy, equality, and logic. In curating ACK’s Public Program, I was inspired by the manner in which these glitches provoke an examination of the interconnectedness of and resistance towards societal cornerstones such as power, wealth, gender, and environment. Through the Public Program, strong artistic perspectives are gathered in order to critically challenge today’s most prevalent glitches. I am looking forward to seeing these perspectives in conversation with other aspects sections of the fair.”
　

For additional information on the Public Program, please visit https://a-c-k.jp/en/ack-curates/public-program/.

ACK Talks

ACK will host ACK Talks, a series of dynamic conversations on a broad range of topics within and surrounding the international art ecosystem that are connected to the fair’s curatorial theme. ACK Talks further reinforces the strength of Kyoto’s art and culture community through inclusion of key local and global players in the art world. Speakers and discussion topics will include a conversation on Kyoto as a cultural crossroads between architect and Kyoto City KYOCERA Museum of Art’s Director Jun Aoki, artist Izumi Kato, and ACK’s Program Director Yukako Yamashita; discussion of coexistence of tradition and innovation between artist Theaster Gates, Mori Art Museum’s Director Mami Kataoka, and Hosoo’s President and CEO as well as kimono weaver and curator Masataka Hosoo; comments on the mission of arts in the future by artist Kour Pour and Project for Empty Space’s Founder and Co-Director Jasmine Wahi; and a conversation on the art ecosystem for the next generation between sculptor Kohei Nawa, ACK’s 2023 Public Program Guest Curator Greg Dvorak, and Delfina Foundation’s Founding Director Aaron Cesar; among others. Simultaneous interpretation and online streaming of ACK Talks will be available.
　

For additional information on ACK Talks, please visit https://a-c-k.jp/en/talks/.

ACK Kids’ Programs

Committed to bettering the future of the art world, the fair will also host ACK Kids’ Programs at ICC Kyoto, dedicated to community enrichment and development. Programs include guided tours of the fair and artist workshops focused on the act of making and creation. ACK Kids’ Programs are free of charge and designated by age groups, with bilingual childcare services available to visitors with children 7 years or younger.
　

For further details and advanced registration, please visit https://a-c-k.jp/en/for-kids/.

Special Programs

ACK is pleased to partner with Mitsubishi Estate Co., Ltd. and EDION Corporation as lead partners for the 2023 edition of the fair. Special Programs will be held in collaboration with lead partners and partner companies within the New Hall of ICC Kyoto, providing visitors with an opportunity to learn about multi-layered interpretations of art. Programs include:
　

For additional information on ACK’s Special Programs, please visit https://a-c-k.jp/en/special-programs/.

Associated Programs

In addition to its presentations within ICC Kyoto and online, the fair will extend into the streets of Kyoto through ACK’s Associated Programs, which include special exhibitions and open call programs that further enrich the larger community. ACK’s Associated Programs exemplify cultural experiences unique to Kyoto’s contemporary art scene, this year presenting special exhibitions such as an installation by Japanese artist Yuta Niwa, presented in collaboration with SGC Co., Ltd. at Komyo-in Zen Temple; and a collaborative art project by COIN PARKING DELIVERY, presented with Geek Pictures Inc. at Heian Jingu Shrine, which was built on the occasion of the 1100th anniversary of Kyoto’s founding as Japan’s capital. In addition to activations in the city’s historic sites, ACK’s Associated Programs will include five special exhibitions selected through open call programs, presenting artists such as Yukio Fujimoto, Mickley Foster, Mai Miyake, Asad Raza, Hirofumi Isoya, Ghost Mountain Ghost Shovel, and Navid Nuur.
　

For additional information on ACK’s Associated Programs, please visit https://a-c-k.jp/en/associated-programs/.

ACK Bonded Status

The third edition of Art Collaboration Kyoto will welcome 64 galleries from across the globe, including 33 first-time exhibitors. In 2022, Art Collaboration Kyoto obtained bonded status, allowing international exhibitors to be exempt from the 10% sales tax that otherwise would have been imposed pre-sale. The fair has reapplied for bonded status for its 2023 edition in October.
　

For the full list of participating galleries, please visit https://a-c-k.jp/en/exhibitors/.

Notes to Editors

About Art Collaboration Kyoto

Art Collaboration Kyoto is an art fair held in Kyoto with collaboration at its core. One of the leading art fairs in Japan specializing in contemporary art, Art Collaboration Kyoto presents unique collaborations forged between Japanese and international galleries; government and private sectors; and fine arts and other cultural spheres in Kyoto. Hosted in the Kyoto International Conference Center, the fair consists of two sections: “Gallery Collaborations”, which pairs a local Japanese gallery with its international peer in a shared booth; and “Kyoto Meetings”, which features artists with distinct connections to Kyoto. Beyond the fair, special exhibitions and public programs are held in Kyoto City.
　

Art Collaboration Kyoto is organized by the ACK Executive Committee, which includes the Kyoto Prefecture; Association for the Promotion of Contemporary Art in Japan; Contemporary Art Dealers Association Nippon; Culture Vision Japan Foundation Inc.; Kyoto Chamber of Commerce and Industry; and the Kyoto Convention and Visitors Bureau. The fair is presented with support from The Cabinet Office, Government of Japan in the fiscal 2023, the Japan Tourism Agency, Government of Japan in the fiscal 2022, and Agency for Cultural Affairs, Government of Japan in the fiscal 2023.
　

The fair is presented in cooperation with: Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Japan, Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry, Japan Tourism Agency, Agency for Cultural Affairs, JETRO Kyoto, Kyoto City, The Japan Chamber of Commerce and Industry, Japan Association of Corporate Executives, Japan Association of New Economy, Kyoto Association of Corporate Executives, The Kyoto Shimbun,The Asahi Shimbun Kyoto General Bureau, The Mainichi Newspapers Kyoto Bureau, The Yomiuri Shimbun Kyoto Bureau, The Sankei Shimbun, Kyoto Broadcasting System Company Limited, U.S. Consulate General Osaka-Kobe, British Council, Consulate General of The Republic of Indonesia, Australian Consulate-General in Osaka, Korean Cultural Center Osaka, Embassy of Switzerland in Japan, Consulate General of the Federal Republic of Germany Osaka-Kobe, Embassy of Brazil, Ambassade de France / Institut français du Japon, Embassy of Mexico in Japan.
　

The fair will be held across the Event Hall and the New Hall within the ICC Kyoto. In the Event Hall, several booths are grouped together to create individual exhibitions and exchange spaces. Created to contrast the Event Hall, the New Hall will emerge as a large cohesive space. Both venues are interrelated, like the front and reverse of the same space, providing a place where people can encounter artworks in the absence of those layouts and design distinctive of traditional art fair formats. ACK’s spatial design is created by Takashi Suo.
　

The fair is located at the Kyoto International Conference Center (Takaragaike, Sakyo-ku, Kyoto City) and others. For more information, please visit a-c-k.jp.

2023 Dates and Hours
Preview (by invitation only):
Friday, October 27, 2023, 12pm–6pm

Public opening dates:
Saturday, October 28, 2023, 12pm–7pm
Sunday, October 29, 2023, 12pm–7pm
Monday, October 30, 2023, 12pm-5pm

About Yukako Yamashita, ACK Program Director
Born in 1988 in Tokyo to a family that runs a tea ceremony utensils business in Kyoto, Yukako Yamashita completed an MA in Art Business at Sotheby’s Institute of Art in London, then joining Sotheby’s Japan where she oversaw the sales of contemporary art. From 2017 to 2022, Yamashita was the managing director of THE CLUB, a contemporary art gallery in Tokyo, Japan. She has served as a visiting professor at Kyoto University of Arts since 2020 and was appointed Program Director of Art Collaboration Kyoto and Kyoto City Growth Strategy Promotion Advisor in 2022.

About Greg Dvorak, Guest curator of the Public program
Dr. Greg Dvorak is a Professor of International Cultural Studies (History and Cultural Studies, Art Studies, Gender Studies of Pacific and Asia) at Waseda University in Tokyo, Japan. In addition to authoring several scholarly chapters in academic edited volumes, he is the Founding Director of Project35 (project sango), a grassroots network that aims to raise awareness about the Pacific Islands region in Japan through art and scholarly exchange. He served as a co-curator for “Air Canoe: Art from Northern Oceania” in the 10th Asia Pacific Triennial of Art and has helped to advise other exhibitions such as the inaugural Honolulu Biennial.

Selection Committee
Axel Dibie, Galerie Crèvecoeur (Paris)
Yoshiaki Inoue, Yoshiaki Inoue Gallery (Osaka)
Tomio Koyama, Tomio Koyama Gallery (Tokyo)
Yuichi Mori, Mori Yu Gallery (Kyoto)
Shelly Wu, TKG+ (Taipei)
Yuko Yamamoto, ANOMALY (Tokyo)

Sponsors and Partners

Media Contact
FITZ & CO | Talia Trauner | ttrauner@fitzandco.com | +1 646 589 0945
Art Collaboration Kyoto | Yoshiko Nawa and Rasa Tsuda | press@a-c-k.jp