Image: Okayama Prefectural Museum of Art
A special exhibition titled 'Circus! Welcome to the Dream World' opened on August 1 at the Okayama Prefectural Museum of Art, timed to coincide with the Kinoshita Circus’s run in Okayama. The exhibition brings together about 130 works and materials related to the circus, ranging from paintings and prints to historical documents that trace the entertainment form from the late Edo period to the present.
According to the source material, the display includes works by Marc Chagall, Georges Rouault and Kohyu Yoshikuni, all presented through images of performers, acrobats, clowns and circus scenes. The exhibition is organized around the visual world of the circus, with examples that show both its spectacle and its emotional register, from Chagall’s brightly colored depictions of aerial acts to Rouault’s images of clown figures.
A notable feature of the exhibition is a new installation by artist Atsumi Sakai, known for her 'light paper-cut' works. Created especially for this show, the piece projects images of acrobatic elephants and starry skies across a tent-like space, producing an immersive environment for visitors. The museum described the work in the original report as one that drew reactions from families and created an enchanting atmosphere.
The exhibition opened with a ceremony and preview held the day before the official launch, attended by around 80 people, including local officials and other related figures. The opening also included remarks about the connection between the circus performance and the museum’s special exhibition, reflecting a shared effort to present the theme through both live entertainment and art.
The exhibition is jointly presented by the Okayama Prefectural Museum of Art, Okayama Broadcasting and The Sanyo Shimbun. It runs through September 23, 2026, and the museum will be closed on Mondays except August 10 and September 21. A commemorative lecture is scheduled for August 2 at 2 p.m., to be given by Naoyuki Kinoshita, honorary professor at the University of Tokyo and director of the Shizuoka Prefectural Museum of Art.
