A Visit to the Futuristic Nihonbashi Art Aquarium

This cool yearly attraction is a popular destination for local Tokyoites and travelers alike, so we've had it on our event calendar for months (you'll find the art aquarium right here, but do take a look at the calendar for similar cool events around Japan.) And no wonder it's so popular; with thousands of colorful fish swimming around dozens of crazy, beautiful enclosures, it's bound to leave an impression.

Hidetomo Kimura first launched the Art Aquarium in 2011, and has been introducing new features to the exhibition every year since. These days, the Art Aquarium even becomes the "Night Aquarium" after 7pm, with a bar and special themed cocktails, plus a series of ~after hours~ special events featuring DJs, kabuki artists, and more.

As the magnificent finale of the Nihonbashi Art Aquariums, 2019 will feature more kingyo and more tanks than any previous event. Using lighting and sound design, it is a little like wandering into an Edo Period geisha quarter in an alternate universe. Before everything gets moved to Kumamoto, feast your eyes on some impressive displays.

Wandering through the exhibition hall, it's impossible to keep track of how many goldfish you've seen. (You'll end up counting "1, 4, 9... 209? 4,009?") It's a lot of fish, and the colorful schools go to and fro in the ever-moving and changing exhibits. Each new space in the hall utilizes the beauty of fish gracefully cutting through the water in a different way, presenting all kinds of watery elegance. If you suffer from ichthyophobia (you're a little fish-phobic), this might not be the event for you.

Our English editor on the other hand (hello there!), was a fan of the tanks with fantastic kaleidoscopic and magnifying effects. These brought the concept to another level, miles away from that toy kaleidoscope filled with bits of colorful plastic you had as a kid. Look through one of the kaleidoscopic chambers on the sides of the tank, and the little goldfish moving in front of a background of colorful marbles create a pretty enchanting effect that you can watch for hours. We sat spellbound by the magnifying bubbled lenses, which make the living fish become broken images that flutter and shift in front of your eyes. Pretty cool!

In fact, while the huge tanks are nothing to scoff at, the JAPANKURU team all seemed to prefer the smaller versions arranged strategically throughout the space. Some of the most beautiful views at the event were to be found squinting through the lace on the small lantern-like works, or looking down on the graceful fishy shadows as seen from above.

Making the whole space a goldfish infused dream, some of the exhibits at the event are new takes on classic spaces.

The final space in the exhibition involves fish and projection mapping, using the tank to turn every moment into a new, gorgeous kimono design. Liquid colors and droplet patterns flicker across the garment shape, while the minute decisions each goldfish makes transform the fabric's pattern.

This is Japan, so upon exiting the dark hall you'll find yourself in a brightly lit cafe space and gift shop. Sit down at a little table by the window, looking down onto a busy Tokyo street, and you can treat yourself to some fun goldfish-themed snacks and drinks. Some choice options are the coffees with goldfish latte art, little jello cups and sodas featuring goldfish gummies, and goldfish-patterned Swiss roll. (Your friendly neighborhood JAPANKURU editors didn't have the necessary 600~700 yen on hand to indulge in these delights, so we hope you'll try them and tell us what you thought!)

Walk a little further and you'll find yourself in merchandise heaven, with a gift store offering goldfish items of all kinds. If we'd had the cash, we might have spent ourselves into ruin, picking up boxes of little goldfish macarons, handkerchiefs and towels, patterned fans, cute fish stuffies, snacks, accessories, and display items of all kinds.

The Art Aquarium is no well-kept secret, so on the weekends it gets crowded! The JAPANKURU team got there 30 minutes before opening on a Sunday, and the line of people waiting was already 50+. If you're in Japan on vacation, we heartily recommend you try going on a weekday, and avoid the Japanese summer holidays that center around Obon if you can (around August 10~18). Of course, if you really want to take some fantastic shots of the exhibition with no people in the background, you can spring for a priority ticket. (Admission is 1,000 yen, priority 2,000 yen.) You'll still want to get there before things open, in that case, since the priority just springs you to the front of the line.

The event is actually tied up with a number of other things going on in the neighborhood, so make it a whole day out! You can see the informational pamphlet, in Japanese, right here. For one, the ticket (or just wearing a yukata) will give you discounts on a few things within Coredo, the mall that contains the exhibition hall. Our favorite promotion was the free photo print you can get just downstairs. Take a cool picture at the exhibition, post it on instagram with the hashtag #コレドの夏 (Coredo summer!), and get your print with a special goldfish digital frame from a machine in the 4th floor Muji. Afterwards, head out of the mall and back onto the streets: nearby is the Fukutoku Shrine, where you'll find a very summery display of little Japanese wind chimes.

Or, if you happen to be as much of a fan of both pokemon and bubble tea as we are, you can take a little stroll to get some themed tapioca drinks in the same neighborhood. The Nihonbashi Takashimaya has a pop-up Hong Kong-style pokemon-centric boba stand in the basement from August 1~13!

Eco Edo Nihonbashi Art Aquarium 2019 ~Edo, Coolness of Kingyo~
Dates: July 05, 2019 - September 23, 2019
Hours: 10:00 - 22:30 (Sat ~11:30) / Night Aquarium from 19:00~
Location: 2-2-1 Nihonbashi Muromachi, Chuou-ku, Tokyo
Access: At Mitsukoshimae Station, 10 min. from Kanda Station, Nihonbashi Station, Tokyo Station
Official Website

If you think this event looks cool, Japan is full of spectacular displays like this!
Here are some other events we think you might like:
Digitized Forest at the World Heritage Site of Shimogamo Shrine, Kyoto Art by teamLab
Enoshima Island Toro Lantern Festival (江の島灯籠) 2019
Kamuy Lumina - An Enchanted Night Walk at Lake Akan (Hokkaido)​
Ski Jam Geo Illumination (Dinosaur Themed!) Light Show - (Fukui)

And if you like hanging out with animals, there's always Hiroshima's rabbit island!

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