MoN Team
Executive Producer
Executive Producer
A fascinating city attracts diverse people, connects everything, and gives rise to new cultures. MoN Takanawa: The Museum of Narratives is a museum responsible for the creation and dissemination of culture in Takanawa Gateway City.
This is a place that holds the memory of innovation, as it was here more than 150 years ago that Japan's first railway ran over the sea. Just as Takanawa Ōkido once served as the gateway to Tokyo, where many people and cultures intersected, MoN Takanawa also hopes to be a place that connects all kinds of culture and art from all over Japan, transcending genres, and creating the value of happiness.
This museum will serve as the ultimate finger that connects culture and people, like the ultimate "Come join me!", and we will strive to weave a circle of Narratives from Japan to the world and from the world to Japan, so that it can be passed down to the next 100 years.
Broadcast writer and Vice President ofKyoto University of Art and Design. Born in Kumamoto Prefecture in 1964. Has worked on numerous television programs, including "Iron Chef" and "World Heritage," and won Japan Academy Awards for Best Screenplay for the film "Okuribito (Departures)." Has also written lyrics for "Stand Alone by Maki Mori and "Furusato by Arashi" by Arashi. He is also the creator of "Kumamon." In addition to his writing career, he has served as an advisor to local communities and businesses, Owner of Shimogamo Saryo, and the thematic project producer for Expo 2025 Osaka, Kansai.
Artistic Director
Artistic Director
In the Edo period, when Takanawa was a famous spot for moon viewing, the moon was something to be admired from afar. In the Meiji era, a railway was laid in this area through collaboration with foreigners, and after a long period of time, a new town was born. And now, the day is fast approaching when the moon will no longer be merely something to be gazed upon, but a destination in itself. We have seized the future by creating something that transcends cultural differences.
MoN Takanawa: The Museum of Narratives is a museum that transcends boundaries between art, technology, entertainment, academia, and business, creating new Narratives and cultures that go beyond time and space, from tradition to the future. “MoN” carries two meanings in Japanese: mon (“gate”) and mon (“question”). It is a place where you can encounter a "gate" that opens your curiosity and a "question" that creates the future.
A robotics researcher and a manga artist contemplate a trip to the moon while experiencing the atmosphere of Edo. Traditional comic storytellers (rakugo) and AI researchers study the structure of “humor” on tatami. A chef and a fashion designer plan new craft projects together. With such free-spirited combinations of "knowledge," "beauty," and "laughter," we offer you a stimulating experience of "tradition and the future."
Curator and exhibition producer. Since 2002, he has planned numerous projects linking science, technology, and culture at the Miraikan Miraikan – The National Museum of Emerging Science and Innovation and Innovation), including the "Time Time Time," the "teamLab Exhibition," the iconic "Geo-Cosmos" exhibition, and collaborations with Björk and Jeff Mills. He also focuses on introducing Japanese robots, information science, and manufacturing. He has worked at MoMA as the Agency for Cultural Affairs and has served as a guest curator at the Barbican Centre (London) and the Maison de la Culture du Japon à Paris among others. At Expo 2025 Osaka, Kansai, he served as the Creative Director for the “Future of Life” Pavilion produced by Hiroshi Ishiguro. He is also a Good Design Award juror. He has served as head of the museum's opening preparation office since 2020, and will assume his current position in 2025.
MoN Advisor
We have welcomed five experts who share our philosophy as advisors, and they are providing us with multifaceted and specialized perspectives on the museum's direction, themes, Program, and more.
Hiroshi Ishiguro
Professor at The University of Osaka, Visiting Director of the ATR ISHIGURO Hiroshi Laboratories, President and CEO, AVITA Inc., and a leading roboticist. He is engaged in the research and development of teleoperated robots (avatars) and intelligent robots. He is also a pioneer in the study of the humanoid robots (androids), and has received numerous awards including the Osaka Culture Award.
I hope that MoN will not merely be a place to exhibit the past, but a place where we can learn from the past while imagining and creating the future.
Seiko Ito
Writer, Creator. Born in 1961 in Tokyo. Made his literary debut in 1988 with the novel No Life King. Received the 15th Kodansha Essay Award for Botanical Life in 1999, and the 35th Noma Literary New Face Prize for Imaginary Radio in 2013. Active across a wide range of fields including television and music.
Narrative, including bodily expression, is the largest living being on Earth—so ancient that its origin is unknown, and ever-changing in every moment and place. MoN Takanawa is a place that dares to record even a trace of its elusive form, preserving it as a reflection and leaving threads for future analysis. May all narratives pass through this “gate” to enter, and to begin anew.
Yoshie Kris
Artist, Artistic Director of SLOW LABEL. With a cross-disciplinary approach that spans art, design, and entertainment, she leads a variety of community-based projects that explore themes of diversity, co-creation, and accessibility. Her work challenges societal norms and systems. Served as Stage Advisor for the Opening Ceremony of the Tokyo 2020 Paralympic Games.
The backstage areas, often overlooked in conventional halls, have been thoughtfully designed for accessibility, allowing not only audiences but also diverse creators to engage fully. MoN is a grand ark carrying those who will transcend conventions and co-create the future of culture for the next 100 years. I’m excited to see what will emerge from here.
Mari Hashimoto
Curatorial producer. Head of the Preparation Office for the Kankitsuyama Art Museum. Visiting Professor at Kanazawa Institute of Technology. Executive Director at Japan Sword Culture Research and Preservation Association. In addition to writing for newspapers and magazines, his activities are diverse, including curation and consulting. His recent work includes "Kazaru Nihon" (Iwanami Shoten).
The organization and facilities are open to the public or both, and at the same time, they are guided by the clear direction based on the insights of Artistic Director Maholo Uchida. It is on this exquisite balance that the messages from MoN acquire their unique value and appeal. On this new platform, we hope that the unknown perspectives that are linked to "tradition" will be revealed.
Masayoshi Boku
CEO Bascule Inc., Creative Director/Producer. Utilizing technology and creativity, he designs unprecedented connections and interactions, challenging himself to create future experiential value, including the launch of the "The Space Frontier Studio KIBO" that connects the International Space Station with Earth. He has received numerous awards, including Cannes Lions and D&AD.
We hope that MoN Takanawa will become a "gateway of metaphor" where cultures, ideas, and new endeavors from around the world intersect. We hope that the new perspectives and values that emerge here will provide hints for opening up the next era and become a door connecting people and the future of the city.