Art de Vivre, an arts organization based in Odawara, Kanagawa, and ArtFanders Inc., an art-tech company also headquartered in Odawara, have organized a collaborative exhibition titled "Quiet Engagement — Invisible Narratives." The exhibition runs from Saturday, March 7 through Sunday, March 15, 2026, at Odawara Sannomaru Hall. It takes place alongside the Art de Vivre-organized exhibition "Resonating Art" at the same venue.
About the Exhibition
The concept of "Invisible Narratives" centers on the untold inner worlds of individual Art de Vivre artists. Art Brut—art born outside the established art world—has developed in Japan through connections with welfare and community settings. Yet the motivations behind each artist's work, and the rich inner stories they carry, have often been difficult to share with the public, sometimes reduced to oversimplified images of "purity" or "innocence."
This collaborative exhibition aims to address that gap. Art de Vivre artists based in Odawara engage in dialogue with contemporary artists, and their works are reconceived through those collaborations. An AI component also allows visitors to interact with elements of each artist's worldview. Rather than delivering finished interpretations, the exhibition creates space for ongoing engagement—what it describes as "quiet engagement."
Exhibition Details
- Title: Quiet Engagement — Invisible Narratives
- Dates: Saturday, March 7 – Sunday, March 15, 2026
- Hours: 9:00 AM – 9:00 PM
- Venue: Odawara Sannomaru Hall, 1F Exhibition Room / Gallery Corridor
- Admission: Free (planned)
- Organized by: Art de Vivre "Resonating Art"
- Co-produced by: ArtFanders Inc.
- Supported by: 83 Foundation / Odawara City
- Technical support: Omoshiro Technology Inc. / artcodec Inc.
- Documentation support: Naomu Niimi
- Photography support: Taro Karibe
- Installation support: Hiroshi Anzai
- Sponsored by: 83 Foundation (General Foundation)
- Endorsed by: Odawara City
Collaboration Works
Takakura Kazuki × Suzuki Yuta × Amano Yuto
Work by Takakura Kazuki
Characters and storylines from an Art de Vivre artist's painted world are expanded into a game-like environment where visitors can physically enter and experience the space. The hidden narratives within the flat paintings are extended and transformed into a participatory world within a digital space.
Hirayama Takumi × Matera Yu
Work by Hirayama Takumi
The relational structures within the works—such as "friends" and "rivals"—are materialized as sculptural forms. Unspoken emotions and distances are anchored in physical space through sculpture, making previously invisible relationships quietly visible.
ArtFanders "egoGraphica" × Angelus
Artist Angelus's unique inner story world is externalized through AI technology and dialogue design. Through ongoing conversation with Angelus, an AI learns the characters, events, and symbolic motifs within his narratives, making them accessible through open dialogue with visitors. This is an experiment in quietly engaging with a continuously unfolding story from within.
Talk Event: March 13 (Friday)
A talk event titled "Contemporary Artists on Art Brut" will be held on Friday, March 13, 2026, during the exhibition period. The discussion will explore how contemporary artists view Art Brut, examining the tension between the established art world and its margins, the intersection of welfare and contemporary art, and the thinking behind introducing AI agents into the project.
- Date: Friday, March 13, 2026, 3:30 PM – 5:00 PM
- Venue: Odawara Sannomaru Hall, 2F Studio
- Registration: Required in advance (first-come, first-served)
- Application: https://luma.com/31yv2ye7
Speakers:
- Takakura Kazuki (contemporary artist)
- Hirayama Takumi (contemporary artist)
- Nakatsugawa Hiroaki (art director)
Facilitator:
- Yoshida Riho (ArtFanders CEO / Art Producer)
Participating Artists
Takakura Kazuki
Born in 1987. Completed a master's program at Tokyo Zokei University Graduate School. Using digital expressions such as video games, pixel art, XR, and AI, Takakura explores physicality and ritual in the digital age through the lens of characters and game structures, while drawing on Eastern philosophy to reconsider the structures and assumptions of contemporary art.
Notable projects include the solo exhibition "MekaReal" at the Yamanashi Prefectural Museum of Art (2023), the exhibition initiative "Character Matrix" at BUG (2024), and the installation "Hyperman Ban Go O" at GINZA SIX (2025). In 2025, his work entered the permanent collection of the Yamanashi Prefectural Museum of Art. He is also a selected artist for OpenAI's "sora select TOKYO" and serves as art director for the theater company "Hanchu-Yuei."
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/takakurakazuki/
Hirayama Takumi
An artist working primarily with clay sculpture and installations. Using human interactions and events as starting points, Hirayama layers imagery from culture, narrative, and tokusatsu to explore other-understanding and the nature of communication. In recent years he has participated in exhibitions and art projects in Japan and abroad, pursuing expressions that emerge at the intersection of form and language.
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/takumihirayama/
Art de Vivre — Nakatsugawa Hiroaki
An artist who produces paintings and continues to hold solo exhibitions and live painting events in Japan and abroad. In parallel, Nakatsugawa supports individuals with disabilities and those facing difficulties in expressing themselves. He has long worked to connect society and art across boundaries, questioning the meaning and value of human expression. He supervises the Saitama Prefecture Disability Arts Exhibition (since 2012) and has been involved in exhibition planning across Japan. He is the representative of the Expression Activities Research Institute "Lascaux," and serves as a board member of NPO Able Art Japan and the general incorporated association Get in Touch.
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/nakatsugawa_art/
Facilitator — Yoshida Riho
CEO of ArtFanders Inc., based in Odawara. She plans and implements art projects using AI, blockchain, and dialogue design, with a focus on connecting technology and art. In recent years, she has been working to advance "egoGraphica," a platform that extends the art experience from passive viewing to active engagement, connecting artists' creative processes with a broader public.
