“Casa embrujada” en el Museo de Arte Contemporáneo de Tokyo

The Museum of Contemporary Art Tokyo presented a summer exhibition for children entitled “GHOSTS, UNDERPANTS and STARS” for which we designed a “Haunted house”.

The concept of this exhibition invites young visitors to consider the paradox of the rules of the museum, such as ‘Don’t Run’, ‘Don’t Touch’ or ‘Keep Quiet’ by allowing behavior normally forbidden in museums.

From a different perspective, the seemingly endless hallways and portraits with gazes that appear to follow one around are characteristics that provide museums the elements to create an eerie atmosphere. Thus, we set out to turn an exhibition space with such characteristics into a spooky hall of portraits. At first, the paintings on the walls appear perfectly ordinary, but strange things begin to occur as eyes gaze at you and faces in the picture suddenly change. Hidden behind the walls is in fact a backstage room from where all sorts of antics are unleashed on unsuspecting visitors. Museum-goers previously on the receiving end of such antics can also enter the secret room and reverse the roles by becoming in turn tricksters on the other side of the paintings. We aimed to create a “Haunted play house” that can not only spook visitors, but also engage them more actively while stimulating their imagination.

Visitors exiting the “Haunted play house” on their way to the next exhibition hall are greeted by specially printed eyeball stickers affixed on one side of a bridge appropriately renamed the “Bridge with eyes.” As we set out onto the bridge, the eyeballs, which one assumes to be static, appear to follow us as if beckoning the surreal world of the “Haunted play house”; an exhibition space where one can feel the underlying presence.