This edition of the MOMAT Collection centers on a special feature titled “What Is Like the Present?”, which unfolds over nine rooms. To consider “the present,” an era defined by the vortex of the coronavirus crisis, we have chosen a riddle-like approach with nine solutions to view a century of art history from various perspectives.

Makino Torao, Sunny Room , 1931

A riddle consists of a solution followed by a punch line. As we search for a standard punch line to the answers, which deal with subjects such as personal expressions and isms, art and the state, the subjective and the objective, and works and museums, we might conclude that distance is essential. An artist’s distinctive way of observing the current state of a given phenomenon while maintaining their distance from it promises to provide us with helpful hints for creatively passing our time in the present. In-Room 12, we present new works by Okazaki Kenjiro, which was made during the coronavirus pandemic.

Viewers will also be enjoying seeing some old favorites in “Highlights” (Room 1, 4th floor) as well as Soul and Soul, a work by the photographer Suzuki Kiyoshi, which is being shown to commemorate the 20th-anniversary of Suzuki’s death (Room 9, 3rd floor). In-Room 10 (3rd floor), you will also find a selection of Nihon-ga (Japanese-style paintings) presented in two terms (the first running from Nov. 3 to Dec. 20, and the second from Dec. 22-Feb. 23). And a small exhibit devoted to sculptures of the male form can be found in Gallery 4 (2nd floor). Please relax and enjoy your visit to the museum.