TOKYO (ANN/THE YOMIURI SHIMBUN) – Streets and open spaces around Shimokitazawa Station in Tokyo’s Setagaya Ward are being decorated with moon-themed artworks to coincide with Chushu no Meigetsu, or the harvest moon, which falls on September 29 this year.
The event event in the Shimokitazawa district will run through October 1 involving artists from Japan and abroad, showcasing their artworks as part of Moon Art Night Shimokita.
Moon Art Night Shimokita is organised by Odakyu Electric Railway Co and others, and is aimed at using art to enliven Shimokitazawa, a town popular with young people.
The featured artworks include a seven-meter spherical representation of the moon made with photos of the lunar surface. There is also an approximately 14-metre-long balloon shaped like a rabbit, an animal traditionally associated with the moon.
Visitors were seen taking photos of these and other pieces.
Local restaurants, shops and resident associations are collaborating with the event in various ways, such as offering special food and drinks or holding yoga workshops.
“I hope people will enjoy the artwork,” said Runa Saeki, 38, of the general incorporated association Shimokita Engeibu, which organises a rabbit artwork hunt in a grassy area.
“I’d like to also convey the charms of Shimokitazawa, which has a lot of greenery,” Saeki said.
