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Note: The opinions and views expressed in this user report are those of the individual author and do not necessarily reflect the opinions and views of japan-guide.com.

July 13, 2015 - Event: Eco Edo Nihonbashi Art Aquarium

Do you like goldfish? How about goldfish lit by neon lights in interesting aquariums? The Art Aquarium is a annual, multi-city event from the mind of Hidetomo Kimura, self-proclaimed "Aquarium Artist".

I visited this year's show to see what all the fuss was about. It was my first time at an Art Aquarium event, but I'll be back for sure! It was a fun and interesting, and not just for goldfish lovers!

(I apologize for the quality of the photos in advance. They are all iPhone pictures as I didn't bring my regular camera with me this trip.)

The exhibiton is located near Tokyo Station at the Nihonbashi Mitsui Hall. The first floors are shopping and restaurants. To enter the event hall, you must go to the 4th floor to buy tickets and proceed from there. Once you've bought tickets, you'll head up to the 5th floor by escalator, walk through a gift shop, and enter the curtained area.

There are a number of bilingual signs about the goldfish, the project, and the creator himself.

Once inside, there is a short corridor featuring different kinds of goldfish in glass bubbles, lit with rotating colors of lights. My husband, a goldfish lover, was annoyed. "I don't care about the art, I want to see the fish's original colors and their names!" he groused. For me, I thought the different colors highlighted each fish's unique shape.

The Main Hall area features a large central exhbit surrounded by smaller ones. I thought the prism shape was really beautiful! The fish in the top containers of the aquarium were truly giant specimens of goldfish!

The lotus was my second favorite area, but the colors changed so quickly it was hard to get a good picture. The atmosphere and music made it very zen-like.

This was perhaps my favorite, as the globe rotated with water streaming down and the colors shifted. It was pretty mesmerizing!

Speaking of mesmerizing, the final exhibit was an interactive display, where the swimming fish created the background. At one point the shoji "doors" opened to show a fight between what looked to be the gods of thunder and lightning, only for the doors to shut and the peaceful tranquility return in the shape of seasonal flowers. I mean, who comes up with this stuff?!

After the exit is the cafe area, where various goldfish-themed drinks and sweets were for sale. I didn't get one, but there were a whoooole lot of people who did. They looked yummy!

Around the building, those who showed their event tickets (and people in yukata) were given discounts and special prizes if you also shopped. There were a number of goldfish-themed goods both from the event gift shop and outside shops. I REALLY wanted the giant plush goldfish, but I resisted and just bought a small keychain instead.

Event Information:

Eco Edo Nihonbashi Art Aquarium is held from July 10th through September 23rd, 2015 from 11:00AM to 11:30PM. Tickets cost 1000 yen for adults.

The time from 7:00PM to 11:30PM is considered "Night Aquarium". Alcoholic drinks are served and the atmosphere is lounge-style. After 9pm, under 20 is not permitted. There is an event calendar featuring musical acts, as well as a "Maiko Night" and an "Oiran Night", on the official website (linked below).

NOTE: This is a popular event and can get extremely crowded! If you want to go for one of the event nights, I recommend buying tickets in advance!

There is also a similar event being held in Hiroshima now as well.

Additional Information:
http://artaquarium.jp/en/

Enjoy this amazing and special event!

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List of Posts:
2016/04/24 - Mitsuhiko Imamori Paper Cut Works Exhibit in Takasaki
2015/11/19 - Shiobara Onsen, Tochigi
2015/08/30 - Southern Kyushu: Miyazaki City
2015/08/30 - Southern Kyushu: Nichinan Coast and Cape Toi
2015/08/30 - Southern Kyushu: Takachiho, Miyazaki
2015/08/27 - Southern Kyushu: Kumamoto Castle
2015/08/25 - Southern Kyushu: Ibusuki and Kirishima
2015/08/24 - Southern Kyushu: Kagoshima City, Kagoshima
2015/08/03 - Tambara Lavender Park
2015/07/13 - Event: Eco Edo Nihonbashi Art Aquarium
2015/05/01 - Kanna-machi Koi-no-Bori Festival
2015/05/01 - Wisteria Festival in Fujioka
2014/11/15 - Sakurayama Koen: Fall Colors and Winter-blooming Cherry Blossoms
2014/11/15 - Ueno-mura Sky Bridge and Fall Colors
2014/08/22 - Gifu Road Trip Part 1: Gifu City and Gujo Caves
2014/08/22 - Gifu Road Trip Part 2: Gujo City and Shirakawa-go
2014/08/22 - Gifu Road Trip Part 3: Hida Takayama
2014/07/02 - Rainy Season around Tokyo: Hydrangea Flowers
2014/05/27 - Road Trip: Yamadera, Yamagata
2014/05/26 - Road Trip: Yonezawa, Yamagata
2014/05/19 - Roadtrip Fukushima's Ouchijuku
2014/05/16 - Roadtrip: Aizu-Wakamatsu
2014/04/30 - Climbing Gunma's Mt. Myogi
2014/03/09 - Flower Weekend 2: Tokyo Report
2014/03/09 - Flower Weekend 1: Gunma Plums
2013/10/30 - Onioshidashi Koen and Mt. Asama Part 1
2013/10/30 - Onioshidashi Koen and Mt. Asama Part 2
2013/10/30 - Cosmos and Mt. Myogi
2013/10/01 - Fall Flowers: Higanbana
2012/12/01 - Winter Cherry Blossoms at Joumine Kouen
2012/11/18 - Annual Coco Harvest Festival
2012/11/11 - Ueno Cat cafe ''Nekomaru''
2012/11/10 - Tokyo Design Festa vol.36 at Odaiba
2012/11/04 - Utsunomiya, Tochigi Gyoza Festival