“Godzilla: THE ART Exhibition” Opens February 11, 2027 at the Tottori Prefectural Museum of Art; Tadanori Yokoo and Others Take On Godzilla

“Godzilla 70th Anniversary: Godzilla: THE ART Exhibition” opens at the Tottori Prefectural Museum of Art (Kurayoshi, Tottori Prefecture) on Thursday, February 11, 2027 (a public holiday). It runs until Sunday, April 11, in the 3F Special Exhibition Gallery. According to the museum, it is a large-scale exhibition of artworks created by contemporary creators on the theme of Godzilla, with Takeshi Yoro as general producer. Admission is 1,800 yen for adults. It was held in Tokyo in 2025 and in Kobe in summer 2026.

What kind of exhibition? Artists’ answers to “What is Godzilla?”

According to the official website, GODZILLA THE ART is a project in which artists from Japan and abroad working today go beyond the framework of film and confront Godzilla in their own ways. The exhibition presents each artist’s answer to the question “What is Godzilla?” as works in a variety of genres, including painting, sculpture, photography and performance. Godzilla marked the 70th anniversary of its birth in 2024.

The official website lists 22 participating artists and groups: Tadanori Yokoo, Miran Fukuda, O JUN, Sachiko Kazama, Kikuji Kawada, Tokyo Build, Motohiko Odani, Natsumi Aoyagi, Tomoko Sato, Akira Takayama, Isamu Gakiya, COIN PARKING DELIVERY, Kosuke Kawamura, Kensuke Koike, Haroshi, Hiroki Tsukuda, James Jarvis, Jean Jullien, Kotaro Abe, Ryuichi Ohira, Tadanobu Asano and TOKI. Of these, Akira Takayama is said to have decided not to exhibit at the Tokyo venue after considering the production schedule and conditions for realizing the work.

Works introduced include Tadanori Yokoo’s “PARADISE,” Motohiko Odani’s “the One – Gojira (Temporary Monument 6)” and Tokyo Build’s “The Pharmacy.” Dioramas by Toho Eizo Bijutsu fusing Godzilla and art, and a special video made for the exhibition, are also shown exclusively at the venue. The Tottori Prefectural Museum of Art says it will also introduce the beauty of Godzilla’s forms and the appeal of the films through displays of miniatures, footage and materials from the time.

Why now? Godzilla as a symbol of “disaster,” according to Takeshi Yoro

In a message on the official website, Takeshi Yoro writes that Godzilla seems to him to have always been a symbol of “disaster.” The creators of the first film, “Godzilla” (1954), are said to have intended it to raise questions about hydrogen bomb accidents and environmental pollution. Yoro also reflects on the Japanese people who, nine years earlier, had experienced the atomic bombings and the end of the war.

He then describes Godzilla as a symbol of the history and culture brought about by disasters, including natural disasters such as earthquakes and typhoons, and of the atmosphere that has historically existed in Japan. He sees art as something that restores differences through the senses, against a civilization that tends to homogenize through words, calling it “an antidote to civilization.” The exhibition can be seen as an attempt by artists to reinterpret, outside the framework of film, a Godzilla whose form and concept have changed with the times.

Yoro is currently holding a two-person exhibition with his insect-loving friend Kenji Kohiyama, the insect exhibition by Takeshi Yoro and Kenji Kohiyama, at the Okayama Prefectural Museum of Art (until November 29).

Previous venues: Tokyo and Kobe (information from earlier venues)

The Tokyo venue was the Mori Arts Center Gallery (52nd floor, Roppongi Hills Mori Tower), from April 26 to June 29, 2025. It was organized by The Asahi Shimbun, PARCO and TOHO, and curated by Jin Qiuyu (according to press materials from the Godzilla: THE ART Exhibition PR office).

At the Kobe venue, the Kobe Yukari Museum, it was held from July 5 to September 6, 2026. According to the City of Kobe, it was the second venue in Japan after Tokyo, with about 80 works on display. The museum announced on August 5 that attendance had passed 10,000. This is information from previous venues; the number of works at the Tottori venue had not been announced as of October 20.

Tickets, prices and opening hours

Admission is 1,800 yen for adults, 1,200 yen for students, 500 yen for high school students and 300 yen for elementary and junior high school students. Advance and group tickets are 1,450 yen for adults, 950 yen for students, 400 yen for high school students and 240 yen for elementary and junior high school students. Preschool children, people with disabilities, patients with intractable diseases, people requiring nursing care and their caregivers are free, and a special exhibition ticket also covers the collection exhibition on the same day. As of October 20, the museum’s page did not list the release date or sales method for advance tickets.

Opening hours are 9:00–17:00 (last entry 16:30). The museum is closed on Mondays (open on March 22) and Tuesday, March 23. The museum is currently holding the exhibition “Kanji Maeda: 130th Anniversary of His Birth” until December 13.

Access

The museum is at 2-3-12 Dakyoji-machi, Kurayoshi, Tottori. It is right by the “Kenritsu Bijutsukan-mae” bus stop, about 10 minutes by bus from JR Kurayoshi Station, or about 9 minutes by taxi. It is about 3 hours by JR limited express from Osaka Station and about 2 hours 40 minutes from Okayama Station. From Tottori Sand Dunes Conan Airport it takes about 45 minutes by bus, and from Yonago Kitaro Airport about 1 hour 10 minutes by JR limited express and other means. By car, it is about 50 minutes from Yubara IC on the Yonago Expressway and about 1 hour from Innosho IC on the Chugoku Expressway.

Overview

Name: Godzilla 70th Anniversary: Godzilla: THE ART Exhibition (GODZILLA THE ART EXHIBITION)
Dates: Thursday, February 11 (public holiday) – Sunday, April 11, 2027
Hours: 9:00–17:00 (last entry 16:30)
Closed: Mondays (open on March 22), Tuesday, March 23
Venue: 3F Special Exhibition Gallery, Tottori Prefectural Museum of Art
Address: 2-3-12 Dakyoji-machi, Kurayoshi, Tottori
Admission: Adults 1,800 yen, students 1,200 yen, high school students 500 yen, elementary and junior high school students 300 yen (advance and group: adults 1,450 yen, students 950 yen, high school students 400 yen, elementary and junior high school students 240 yen)
Organizers: Godzilla: THE ART Exhibition Tottori Executive Committee (Tottori Prefecture, Tottori Prefectural Museum of Art Partners, TSK San-in Chuo Television), GODZILLA THE ART Executive Committee
General producer: Takeshi Yoro
Official website: https://tottori-moa.jp/exhibition/view/godzilla/
Exhibition website: https://godzillatheart.com/exhibition
*Information as of October 20, 2026. Please check the official website for the latest information.

*Top image: Exterior of the Tottori Prefectural Museum of Art (photo: Vetalapancavimsatika, CC BY-SA 4.0, from Wikimedia Commons)

*This article was compiled by the TOKYO ART SPHERE editorial team based on information on the official websites of the Tottori Prefectural Museum of Art and GODZILLA THE ART (as of October 20, 2026), press materials from the City of Kobe (April 16, 2026) and press materials from the Godzilla: THE ART Exhibition PR office (April 25, 2025).

Text: TOKYO ART SPHERE Editorial Team