Author(s): Shai Ohayon

LGBTI | EROTICA | ALL THINGS JAPANESE

"An Ode to Tom" is a catalogue for an exhibition by the Japanese homoerotic artists Goh Mishima, Gengoroh Tagame, and Jiraiya at The Container, Tokyo. The catalogue is fully bilingual (Japanese / English) and includes an introduction by the gallery director, Shai Ohayon, among a reflection by Georgie Ichikawa, the chair person of Mr. Gay Japan about LGBTQ rights in Japan, and illustrations from the artists. The exhibition was curated as a satellite exhibition for Japan's first exhibition of the iconic homoerotic artist Tom of Finland (also curated by Ohayon), and presents contemporary Japanese art that was influenced by Tom's works and activist work. The publication explores two generations of contemporary homoerotic Japanese artists and the visual and philosophical development of their practice. The exhibition at The Container in Tokyo, took place 21 September-30 November, 2020. The Container is a contemporary exhibition space in Nakameguro, Tokyo. The space opened in March 2011 to create a site that encourages people to engage with art installations and works, where the emphasis is on curation and the accessibility of contemporary art and ideas to the general public. As the name suggests, the physical space is no more than a constructed shipping container (485x180x177cm), made to measurements of old Japanese shipping containers, in one of Tokyo's most beloved and trendy neighbourhoods, Nakameguro. The Container invites Japanese and international artists to make site-specific installations four times a year. Each installation remains on view to the public for two-and-a- half months.