Otomo Yoshihide + YCAM “IMPROVISATION!”: Four Works and Admission, with Live Performances on November 20 and December 6

At the Yamaguchi Center for Arts and Media [YCAM] in Yamaguchi City, “IMPROVISATION!,” a new exhibition created jointly by musician Otomo Yoshihide and YCAM, is now on. It runs from Saturday, October 17, 2026 to Monday, March 1, 2027, on the theme of improvisation. Four installations that use sound as their material, including “Duo,” which plays a piano using Ryuichi Sakamoto’s keystroke data, are placed in Studios A and B, the foyer and the courtyard inside the building and in Yamaguchi City Central Park. General admission is 1,000 yen, and the foyer, courtyard and park are free. Live performances are also held on Friday, November 20 and Sunday, December 6.

This is the first collaboration between Otomo and YCAM in 18 years, since the exhibition “Otomo Yoshihide / ENSEMBLES” was held at YCAM in 2008. This article summarizes where the four works are shown and how they work, admission and opening hours, and the schedule of live performances, related screenings and other events.

Four works and where they are shown

Studio B: “Duo”

This work is credited to two artists, Otomo Yoshihide and Ryuichi Sakamoto. Piano sounds are reproduced from piano keystroke data (MIDI) left by Sakamoto, while the guitar is played by a device that extracts the characteristics of Otomo’s improvised playing and plays automatically. According to YCAM’s released materials, no AI or other technology is used to analyze or reproduce the sound at all; the guitar and piano are sounded by physical mechanisms.

Studio A: “Dance”

A new work by Otomo Yoshihide, Atsuko Mochida, Takayuki Ito and YCAM. At its center is a large moving structure assembled from pillars and beams salvaged from the demolition sites of wooden houses, layered with noise from numerous speakers and countless household appliances. According to the released materials, members of the public are also expected to take part in generating the work.

Foyer and second-floor gallery: “without records”

This work has been presented in various places since 2005, and this time Otomo Yoshihide, Yasutomo Aoyama and Takayuki Ito are credited. About 80 portable record players that have reached the end of their working lives are operated by an original system. The players were modified by local residents; Aoyama handled the arrangement, Ito built the system that controls the acoustic characteristics of each group, and Otomo composed the timing, incorporating randomness. Only this work went on view early, from Friday, July 24.

Yamaguchi City Central Park and courtyard: “Filaments Outside”

A work by Filament, the unit of Sachiko M and Otomo Yoshihide, and YCAM. It layers sine-wave electronic tones with metallic sounds produced by physical devices, and the light also changes in response to the sound. It is a new version of a work presented at the 2008 exhibition “Otomo Yoshihide / ENSEMBLES,” and it can be seen until 20:00, an hour later than the other works.

Admission, opening hours and free areas

General admission is 1,000 yen, and 500 yen for Yamaguchi City residents and those aged 29 and under. YCAM “any” members, those aged 18 and under, and holders of a disability certificate plus one caregiver are admitted free. The foyer, courtyard and Yamaguchi City Central Park are free to enter, and “Filaments Outside” is located in this area. “without records” is shown in the foyer and the second-floor gallery.

Hours are 10:00 to 19:00, with “Filaments Outside” alone open until 20:00. The center is closed on Tuesdays (or the following day if Tuesday is a national holiday) and over the year-end and New Year holidays, December 29 to January 3. For inquiries, contact the Yamaguchi Center for Arts and Media [YCAM] (083-901-2222).

Schedule of related events and screenings

Related events continue throughout the exhibition. There are two live performances, both requiring advance application, each with a capacity of 100. Tickets are 4,000 yen for general admission, 3,000 yen for “any” members and with the disability discount, and 2,000 yen for those aged 25 and under.

• Saturday, October 24, 14:30–20:00: Special event “Yamaguchi Autumn Bon Odori 2026,” held under the “Magic Roof” of Yamaguchi City’s central shopping street, with Otomo Yoshihide, Yamanaka Camera, Mari Fukutome and Yamaguchi Yuan Gakudan

• Friday, November 20, starting at 19:30: Live performance “Improvisation with Dance vol.1” (Studio A), with Emilie Škrijelj, Tom Malmendier, Otomo Yoshihide and Yoshimitsu Ichiraku

• Sunday, December 6, starting at 18:30: Live performance “I.S.O. Live @ Sesshu Garden: Twenty-Three Years On” (Sesshu Garden; in the Main Hall of Joeiji Temple in case of rain), with I.S.O. (Yoshimitsu Ichiraku, Sachiko M and Otomo Yoshihide)

• From Sunday, November 15: Gallery tours with curators and engineers (13:00–14:00 each time; held several times through February 2027)

• Saturday, November 21, Saturday, December 19 and Saturday, February 13, 2027: Workshops (13:00–15:00 each time)

• Saturday, October 17 – Tuesday, November 3 (national holiday): Related screening of “KIKOE (Re-edited Version)” at YCAM Cinema

At Joeiji Temple, home of the Sesshu Garden where the I.S.O. live performance takes place, the concurrent exhibition “Yamaguchi Seasonal 2026 / Ryuichi Sakamoto + YCAM Forest Symphony” is also on until Sunday, December 6. On the same day, November 20, MUTEK.JP 2026, a festival of electronic music and visuals, also begins in Takanawa, Tokyo.

Production team

The exhibition is organized by Yamaguchi City and the Yamaguchi City Foundation for Cultural Promotion, planned and produced by YCAM, and curated by YCAM’s Tsubasa Nishi. It was co-developed with YCAM InterLab (a research and development team set up within YCAM) and is supported by the Agency for Cultural Affairs’ FY2026 “Project for Forming Hubs of Arts and Culture Creation.” The six participating artists are Otomo Yoshihide, Atsuko Mochida, Ryuichi Sakamoto, Sachiko M, Yasutomo Aoyama and Takayuki Ito.

The exhibition “Otomo Yoshihide / ENSEMBLES” was held in 2008, using the whole of YCAM as its venue. This year’s “Filaments Outside” is based on a work presented at that time. Media art hubs in Japan, including YCAM, are introduced in our explainer on media art, and contemporary art exhibitions around the country in our guide to contemporary art exhibitions.

Otomo Yoshihide’s biography

Otomo Yoshihide is a musician born in Yokohama in 1959 who spent his teenage years in Fukushima (according to the profile on the exhibition website).

Overview

Name: Otomo Yoshihide + YCAM New Installations “IMPROVISATION!”
Dates: Saturday, October 17, 2026 – Monday, March 1, 2027
Venues: Yamaguchi Center for Arts and Media [YCAM] (Studio A, Studio B, foyer, second-floor gallery, courtyard) and Yamaguchi City Central Park
Address: 7-7 Nakazono-cho, Yamaguchi City, Yamaguchi Prefecture
Hours: 10:00–19:00 (“Filaments Outside” only until 20:00)
Closed: Tuesdays (or the following day if Tuesday is a national holiday), year-end and New Year holidays (December 29 – January 3)
Admission: General 1,000 yen; Yamaguchi City residents and those aged 29 and under 500 yen; free for “any” members and those aged 18 and under; free for holders of a disability certificate and one caregiver. The foyer, courtyard and Yamaguchi City Central Park are free
Participating artists: Otomo Yoshihide, Atsuko Mochida, Ryuichi Sakamoto, Sachiko M, Yasutomo Aoyama, Takayuki Ito
Organizers: Yamaguchi City, Yamaguchi City Foundation for Cultural Promotion
Supported by: Yamaguchi City Board of Education
Grant: Agency for Cultural Affairs, FY2026 Project for Forming Hubs of Arts and Culture Creation
Cooperation: KAB Inc.
Co-development: YCAM InterLab
Planning and production: Yamaguchi Center for Arts and Media [YCAM]
Curation: Tsubasa Nishi (YCAM)
Official website: https://otomo-sokkyo.ycam.jp/

*Information as of October 23, 2026. Please check the official website for the latest information.

*Top image: The foyer. Photo: Yuki Katsumura (from a press release by the Yamaguchi Center for Arts and Media [YCAM])

*This article was compiled by the TOKYO ART SPHERE editorial team based on materials released by the Yamaguchi Center for Arts and Media [YCAM] (May 14 and July 29, 2026) and information on the official exhibition website (as of October 23, 2026).

Text: TOKYO ART SPHERE Editorial Team