Directory

Retail Directory 2009 

CULTuART

Tokyo

CULTuART delivers a whip-smart collection of Tokyo’s most sought-after cultural commodities in a 90-square-meter space. A spin-off project of cutting-edge clothing chain Beams and headed by Shuji Nagai, director of Beams T for a decade, this street-savvy store takes the legwork out of finding the some of the best art and design this sprawling city has to offer. Coffee-table books, pop fashion, limited-edition toys, framed prints and original works by star creatives such as graphic designer Tadanori Yokoo, photographer Saori Tao and artist Hiroki Tsukuda are displayed in a haphazard fashion in the white-walled space on the third floor of Beams Harajuku. And the store is currently collaborating with vintage bookshops, and leading independent galleries and museums to create original items. To the uninitiated, the objects – many rooted in underground Tokyo “otaku”(nerd) culture – can be baffling, so the store offers an iPhone or iPod download that provides a detailed description of each piece in English. Loan iPods and four Mac computers also are available for use. Even if you’re not looking to buy, CULTuART serves as an amusing audit of the Tokyo avant-geek art scene an easy introduction to an often hidden side of the city.

Jingu-mae 3-24-7 3F
Harajuku-ku, Tokyo
03 3470 3251

www.beams.co.jp

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