‘Super Natural!’ exhibition

Celebrating 160 years of Swiss-Japanese relations, the Super Natural! Exhibition, which explores the cultural seeds, myths, and narratives shaping idealized images of Switzerland and Japan through six photographers, welcomed around 540 enthusiastic visitors over a four weeks period before concluding successfully on October 9 at YAU Center.

On September 13, around 65 guests including Swiss Ambassador-Designate Roger Dubach attended the reception and inspiring talk with Photo Elysée curator Nathalie Herschdorfer and photographers Taisuke Koyama, Rumi Ando, Maxime Guyon, Keita Kojima, & Delphine Burtin.

The dialogue about nature and technology continued with an enthusiastic audience on September 16 at the “Bio-Likeness” talk featuring Prof. Shunji Yamanaka and Maxime Guyon. Prof. Yamanaka shared insights into his work in biomimetics, highlighting how nature inspires innovations in robotics and prosthetics. Guyon discussed exaptation - how traits evolve to serve new functions in nature and industry. Their exchange underscored themes of (im)perfection, sustainability, and the synergy between art and science.   ⁠

As Switzerland and Japan celebrate 160 years of bilateral relation in 2024, “Super Natural” explores this mutual fascination through the eyes of photographers of both countries. The exhibition is an initiative of Photo Elysée - Museum for Photography - in Lausanne and the Embassy of Switzerland in Japan, in cooperation with Tokyo Photographic Research.

Exhibition Overview

Title | Swiss Vitality Days: The 160th Anniversary of Diplomatic Relations between Switzerland and Japan - Photo Exhibition “Super Natural!”
Period | 2024.9.11 - 2024.10.9
Hours | Weekdays 12:00 - 18:00 / Saturdays 13:00 - 20:00 / Closed on Sundays and holidays
Venue | YAU CENTER (1F KOKUSAI Building, 3-1-1 Marunouchi, Chiyoda-ku, Tokyo 100-0005)
Admission | Free

Artists | Rumi Ando (JP), Delphine Burtin (CH), Maxime Guyon (CH-FR), Keita Kojima (JP), Taisuke Koyama (JP), Ester Vonplon (CH)
Curator | Nathalie Herschdorfer and Lisa Benaroyo, museum Photo Elysée, Switzerland

Event 1 | Opening Talk & Reception: Friday, September 13, 18:00
Speakers｜Nathalie Herschdorfer (Curator, Photo Elysée), Rumi Ando (Japan), Maxime Guyon (Switzerland/France), Keita Kojima (Japan), Taisuke Koyama (Japan), Delphine Burtin (Switzerland)
Venue｜ YAU CENTER (Kokusai Building 1F, 3-1-1 Marunouchi, Chiyoda-ku, Tokyo 100-0005, Japan)

Event 2 | Artist Talk: Monday (Japanese Holiday), September 16, 13:00
Speakers｜Prof. Shunji Yamanaka (Design Engineer / Professor, The University of Tokyo), Maxime Guyon (Photographer, Switzerland / France)
Venue｜ YAU CENTER (Kokusai Building 1F, 3-1-1 Marunouchi, Chiyoda-ku, Tokyo 100-0005, Japan)
Language｜English (with Japanese consecutive interpretation) 

More information here

SPONSORSHIP｜
The Adecco Group
The Adecco Group is the world’s leading talent company. Our purpose is making the future work for everyone. Through our three global business units - Adecco, Akkodis and LHH - across 60 countries, we enable sustainable and lifelong employability for individuals, deliver digital and engineering solutions to power the Smart Industry transformation and empower organisations to optimise their workforces. The Adecco Group leads by example and is committed to an inclusive culture, fostering sustainable employability, and supporting resilient economies and communities.

Bühler K.K. | Straumann Japan K.K. | Swiss International Air Lines

Création Baumann Japan Ltd. | MSC Mediterranean Shipping Company SA | Novartis Pharma K.K. | Roche Diagnostics K.K. | Sonova Japan Co., Ltd. | Zurich Insurance Company Ltd / Zurich Life Insurance Japan Company Ltd.