What this is
Mako Idemitsu: Women's Works is a comprehensive retrospective of Mako Idemitsu, a pioneering Japanese experimental filmmaker and video artist born in 1940, presented at the Tokyo Metropolitan Museum of Photography. The exhibition spans over three decades of her career, showcasing her distinctive 'Mako Style' technique — a method using nested monitors to interrogate women's roles, family dynamics, and the media's relationship with society. Landmark works include her breakthrough video Women's Works (1973) and A Day in the Life of a Housewife (1977), alongside newly printed 16mm films and five immersive installations. Idemitsu is considered one of Japan's most significant feminist video artists, and this retrospective offers a rare opportunity to experience the full arc of her experimental practice. The exhibition holds particular cultural weight as a long-overdue institutional recognition of a female artist who challenged domestic and social norms through the medium of video at a time when few women were doing so in Japan.
Who should go
This exhibition is ideal for contemporary art enthusiasts, film scholars, and anyone with an interest in feminist art history, experimental media, or the development of video art in Japan. The atmosphere is contemplative and intellectually engaging — expect a quiet, gallery-style environment where visitors are encouraged to sit with multi-monitor installations and let the works unfold at their own pace. It is well-suited to solo visitors or small groups who enjoy slow, thoughtful engagement rather than a quick walkthrough. Students of art, film, gender studies, or Japanese cultural history will find particular depth here. Plan to spend at least 90 minutes to do justice to the video installations and film screenings.
Good to know
Tickets are available at the Tokyo Metropolitan Museum of Photography box office in Yebisu Garden Place; the museum's official website (topmuseum.jp) may also offer advance purchase options — check ahead as popular retrospectives can draw queues on weekends. The museum is a mid-sized public institution with a calm, well-lit gallery environment suited to extended viewing; expect a seated or standing experience depending on the installation layout, with benches often provided near video works. Foreign credit cards are generally accepted at the box office, but carrying cash as a backup is advisable. Arrive at least 15 minutes before you plan to start to collect tickets and orient yourself with the exhibition map. The Yebisu Garden Place complex has several cafés and restaurants nearby if you want to debrief after the show.
This event was sourced and translated from Japanese by What's On Japan. Details may change — verify with the official source before attending.