ARS Project Space 7.–23.03.2025
Guided tours and workshops by appointment: Mon–Fri
Exhibition opening hours: Sat–Sun 12:00–18:00
If there is one universal desire that connects humanity, it is the pursuit of happiness. Despite the challenges we face, our determination to seek joy never wanes. Around the globe, individuals explore various avenues in their quests for greater happiness, and there is much we can learn from one another. The exhibition Japanese Happiness - In search of the happiness of inner peace through aesthetic experiences invites visitors to discover new and often overlooked inspirations that enrich our lives. It highlights the profound relationship between aesthetics and happiness, a bond deeply embedded in Japanese culture. This immersive and sensory exhibition illuminates the connections between happiness and Japanese aesthetics through a curated selection of everyday items, design pieces, and works of art – raging from metal tools created with extreme attention to detail, as well as the uniform of the Tokyo public toilet cleaners made famous in Wim Wenders’ film Perfect Days.
The objects on display at the exhibition were selected 20 representatives of the fields of art, design, philosophy, cooking, Japanese studies, music, fiction, fashion, photography and typography from both Europe and Japan who are inspired by Japanese culture. The initiators of the exhibition are the Identity Foundation, which develops philosophical culture in Düsseldorf, and Philipp Teufel, professor emeritus of exhibition design at the Peter Behrens School of Art (PBSA). It is a traveling exhibition that first opened in the spring of 2024 at the Japanese Cultural Institute in Cologne. The design of the exhibition was completed in collaboration with the PBSA exhibition design and the interior architecture master’s students of the Estonian Academy of Arts. The exhibition design is both experimental and playful, radiates calmness and simplicity and evokes a wide variety of sensory impressions.
The exhibition in the ARS Project Space (Pärnu mnt 154) is open to the public on weekends: 8-9, 15-16 and 22-23 March from 12:00 to 18:00.
On all other days, visits to the exhibition take place with pre-registered guided tours. The exhibition is accompanied by a daily programme of workshops, film evenings, lectures and discussion groups at ARS Project Space and EKA in cooperation with TTK University of Applied Sciences, the Japanese Cultural Society in Estonia and the Japanese Embassy in Estonia.
Curator: Philipp Teufel
Exhibition team: Masayo Ave, Annika Kaldoja, Jüri Kermik, Veiko Liis, Ranvir Singh Sandhu, Rainer Zimmermann, Gregor Taul
Organisation: Department of Interior Architecture of the Estonian Academy of Arts in cooperation with TTK University of Applied Sciences, the Japanese Cultural Society in Estonia and the Japanese Embassy in Estonia
Supporters: Identity Foundation, Estonian Artists’ Association, Cultural Endowment of Estonia, Estonian Academy of Arts, Erasmus+ Program, ARS Art Factory
Additional information:
Gregor Taul
Guest lecturer, EKA Interior Architecture Department
+37255690456
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