An exhibition of about 30 chairs, the "30 Postmodern Chairs Exhibition" (『ポストモダンの椅子30脚展』), will be held from Friday, November 27 to Sunday, December 6, 2026 at the Renoveru (リノベる) Omotesando Office in Minami-Aoyama, Minato City, Tokyo. The exhibition is organized by the renovation platform operator Renoveru together with 株式会社イニシャルジャパン, a company that sells imported furniture and handles store design and space styling. Centered on the 1980s, it traces chairs from Japan and abroad, from works by leading postmodern architects and designers through to the minimalism that followed, and the chairs are available for purchase. A vintage flea market is also held on November 27, 28, and 29.
Why Postmodern Chairs Are Back in the Spotlight
Postmodernism grew out of a questioning of the functionality and rationality prized by modernism, and became a design movement that embraced free forms, color, and a sense of play. In Japan, the architect Arata Isozaki and the designers Shigeru Uchida and Setsuo Kitaoka left works that symbolized the era. Their refusal to be bound by convention has carried over into contemporary design, and in recent years museums in Japan have held exhibitions that look at the movement afresh, drawing renewed attention.
The exhibition introduces everything from avant-garde pieces with a sculptural presence to products that are easy to bring into daily life, including the shift toward minimalism from the 1990s onward. It offers a chance to touch the freedom and fun of making things that live in decoration and forms that may at first seem unnecessary.
Featured Pieces
C-022 Armchair (1986) by Shigeru Uchida (内田繁)
A variation on his signature "October" with round legs and a further altered form. It is a very rare piece.
Monroe Chair (1973) by Arata Isozaki (磯崎新)
Its extremely high back and the side curves modeled on the body line of the actress Marilyn Monroe make it one of the masterpieces of design history.
Von Vogelsang Arm Chair (1985) by Philippe Starck (フィリップ･スタルク)
Made by Driade. Its graphic form of chrome-plated pipe and perforated metal has been exhibited at museums around the world, including MoMA.
Side Chair (1980s) by Setsuo Kitaoka (北岡節男)
A chair purified and simplified to the extreme, turning a graphic composition of lines and planes into a three-dimensional object.
Bouquet Decorative Chair (2007) by Tokujin Yoshioka (吉岡徳仁)
Made by Moroso. About 12 m of synthetic leather was cut into small pieces, and artisans sewed them on one by one to express a bouquet of flowers.
MARUMARU (2000s) by Kazuyo Sejima (妹島和世)
Designed by the architect Kazuyo Sejima for driade. A stool and sofa in one, it combines a donut-shaped cushion with slim steel legs.
Held at the Same Time
Kotto-dori Flea Market (骨董通りの蚤の市)
A flea market selling vintage goods and other items opens at the entrance of the Renoveru Omotesando Office, along with a cafe space where coffee and light meals are available. It starts at 2:00 PM on Friday to coincide with Green Friday, a day for thinking about sustainable consumption.
Scene from a past event.
- Dates: November 27 (Fri), 28 (Sat), and 29 (Sun), 2026. Friday 2:00 PM to 8:00 PM; Saturday and Sunday 11:00 AM to 4:00 PM
- Venue: Entrance of the Renoveru Omotesando Office
- Admission: Free, no reservation required
- Planned vendors: SANDS furniture, kaya select, graines tanzawa, おそまつ商店, Saten Proust, TONA CHOCOLATE, soko, önra, and others
Chair Reupholstering Demonstration
Craftspeople from FUJITAKE WORKS, a workshop that reupholsters chairs and more, will give a live demonstration at the venue entrance during the flea market. Visitors can watch up close as handwork gives a well-used chair a new look and a more comfortable feel. Visitors can also ask to have a chair of their own reupholstered. Website: https://fujitakeworks.jp/
Special Showing of Vintage Chairs From ACTUS and SEMPRE
The venue will display vintage chairs from the collections of the lifestyle stores ACTUS (アクタス) and SEMPRE (センプレ), pieces that do not usually appear on store floors. A single chair is enough to show how the appeal of furniture deepens with age.
- ACTUS: https://www.actus-interior.com/
- SEMPRE DESIGN: http://www.sempredesign.co.jp
Open Showrooms
The Renoveru Omotesando Office takes part in the Renovation Experience Fair (リノベーション体感フェア), hosted by Shibuya City and リノベーション協議会 on the weekend only. Three showrooms and concept rooms that are normally by reservation only will be open, so visitors can tour and experience actual renovated rooms. Please check each venue's guidance for details before visiting.
- Dates: November 28 (Sat) and 29 (Sun), 2026, 10:00 AM to 6:00 PM
- Venues: Renoveru Omotesando Showroom (リノベる。表参道ショールーム) / Shibuya Sakuragaoka The R. by RENOVERU [C1] concept room (渋谷桜丘 The R. by RENOVERU【C1】コンセプトルーム) / Minami-Aoyama Park Mansion (南青山パークマンション)
- Admission: No reservation required
- Details: https://www.renovation.or.jp/kanto/ref2026/
About the Re: project
This event is the fourth installment of the interior project "Re: project," which Renoveru started in 2023. Through the experience of touching old furniture and products, the project aims to pass objects and the feelings put into them on to their next users. This idea of making use of what already exists and handing it on to the future is shared with Renoveru's renovation business, which takes a fresh look at the value of pre-owned condominiums.
30 Postmodern Chairs Exhibition (『ポストモダンの椅子30脚展』)
- Dates: November 27 (Fri) to December 6 (Sun), 2026
- Hours: Friday, November 27: 2:00 PM to 8:00 PM (last entry 7:30 PM). Saturdays and Sundays: 11:00 AM to 4:00 PM (last entry 3:30 PM)
- Weekdays: Weekdays other than Friday, November 27 are by appointment only. To request a visit, call Initial Japan at 03-6807-0554
- Venue: Renoveru Omotesando Office B1 "b1." (b1.／ビーワン。), Tatsumura Aoyama Building B1 (たつむら青山ビル), 5-4-35 Minami-Aoyama, Minato City, Tokyo
- Map: https://maps.app.goo.gl/8vgwXZVecWhk2ys98
- Admission: Free, no reservation required
- Planning support: Archéologie Studio (Initial Japan)
- Participating shops: Archeologie Studio (Tokyo), SANDS furniture (Tokyo), UNDERGROUND (Gunma), and private collections
- Exhibit list: https://note.renoveru.co.jp/n/n10ca8f6a1412
- Event page: https://note.renoveru.co.jp/n/n23bb42d20c63
