Japan Society Announces First New York Solo Show for Acclaimed Japanese Contemporary Artist and Designer Acky Bright

New York, NY (July 31, 2024)—Japan Society, a 117-year-old nonprofit with a focus of bringing the U.S. and Japan together, today announced an exciting new exhibition spotlighting ACKY BRIGHT, a rising Japanese contemporary artist and designer beloved for his kawakakkoii (cute and cool) style of illustration and product design.

Acky Bright: Studio Infinity was conceived as the artist's working design studio. The exhibition will offer visitors an exceptional opportunity to meet the artist, witness his freestyle “live drawing,” and participate in making a series of manga-style murals. Performative and interactive, the exhibition will evolve as Acky Bright makes intermittent appearances in the gallery.

In addition to Acky Bright's ongoing mural drawing, the exhibition will showcase two new painting series by the artist, KBK-18 and Ah-Un, that each draw inspiration from traditional Japanese art and theater. Underscoring the impressive range of his contemporary art practice, the show will also highlight Acky Bright's promotional campaigns designed for major companies, including his Squid Games coloring book illustrated for Netflix, WcDonald's paper bags, and YOASOBI x Vaundy's Tiroli Mix (McDonald's Japan).

A fixture at large Japanese pop culture conventions, Acky Bright was a guest at Anime Expo, the largest Japanese pop culture convention in America, and will also appear at Anime NYC on August 23-25, 2024, which annually attracts over 80,000 enthusiastic fans to the Javits Center in NYC. As part of Anime NYC, Acky Bright will host three days of live drawings from a combined Acky Bright X Japan Society booth (Booth 1827) in celebration of his new gallery show, and Japan Society will host a preview of his exhibition these same days. Eager audiences can see Acky Bright: Studio Infinity during this special preview prior to its full opening in October, with Acky Bright appearing in-person during select hours of the preview and audiences able to watch him create his mural live.

Acky Bright has collaborated with major artists and brands throughout the U.S. and Japan, his work has been featured in exhibitions in Tokyo, Nagoya, and Beijing, and his first artbook, B/W, was recently published by PIE International and is available around the world. In Japan, Acky Bright regularly collaborates with creators across media including the heavy metal band ASTERISM, and musicians YOASOBI and Vaundy. Outside of Japan, he has also collaborated with BMW Germany.

In the U.S., Acky Bright has worked with brands including Meta, Hasbro, and Netflix. Further, he is one of the very few Japanese creators who has done illustrations for DC Comics, and he is perhaps best known for the recent WcDonald's campaign, an anime- inspired campaign by McDonald's which featured Acky Bright's illustrations in restaurants across the U.S. and around the globe. Original murals by Acky Bright are on display inside anime publisher Crunchyroll's Dallas office and at Kinokuniya bookstore locations in Dallas, Atlanta and New York City.

“We are thrilled to hold an Acky Bright exhibition for the first time in New York City,” said Japan Society Senior Gallery Director Dr. Michele Bambling. “Japan Society has a long history of supporting rising stars and presenting innovative exhibitions. Having just arrived at the Japan Society as Gallery Director earlier this year, this show will present a future direction of the gallery as an experimental art and design space for both exhibitions and multimedia artmaking. The exhibition provides a platform for visitors and the artist to meet and create side-by-side. By collaborating with both Anime NYC and Kinokuniya bookstores, we extend our reach beyond the walls of the gallery, elevating Acky Bright's engaging profile.”

“Through so much of my career, I have built bridges between my home in Japan and individuals, artists and organizations around the world,” said Acky Bright. “My goal of connecting Japan with the world is very much also Japan Society's mission, and I'm humbled for my art to be featured here for my first exhibition in New York. I hope many people, both young pop culture fans and older art connoisseurs, can enjoy my work and appreciate all the effort I have put into it.”

Tickets for the Acky Bright: Studio Infinity preview are free for Japan Society members and $6 for nonmembers, seniors, and students. Limited edition t-shirts designed by Acky, as well as the tote bags, will also be available for purchase separately during the preview and at the Japan Society booth at Anime NYC. For more information on tickets please visit japansociety.org/gallery.

Acky Bright: Studio Infinity's preview will run August 23-25 from 12 Noon to 7 PM each day.

Japan Society is located at 333 East 47th Street, one block from the United Nations and minutes from Grand Central Terminal, in New York, NY.

For more information, please follow Japan Society on Instagram, Twitter, Facebook. For more information on Acky Bright, please visit www.acky-bright.com.

ABOUT JAPAN SOCIETY GALLERY
Since 1971, Japan Society Gallery has been the premier institution in the United States for the display and interpretation of Japanese art and culture in a global context. Through groundbreaking exhibitions and related programs, the Gallery cultivates a broader understanding and appreciation of Japan's contributions to global artistic heritage; explores the artistic interconnections Japan shares with Asia, the U.S., Latin America, and Europe; and celebrates the diversity of Japanese visual expression from prehistoric times to the present day.

ABOUT JAPAN SOCIETY
Japan Society is the premier organization connecting Japanese arts, culture, business, and society with audiences in New York and around the world. At Japan Society, we are inspired by the Japanese concept of kizuna (絆) – forging deep connections to bind people together. We are committed to telling the story of Japan while strengthening connections within New York City and building new bridges beyond. In over 100 years of work, we've inspired generations by establishing ourselves as pioneers in supporting international exchanges in arts and culture, business, and policy, as well as education between Japan and the U.S. We strive to convene important conversations on topics that bind our two countries together, champion the next generation of innovative creators, promote mutual understanding and serve as a trusted guide for people everywhere who seek to appreciate the rich complexities and abundance of Japan more fully. From our New York headquarters, a landmark building designed by architect Junzo Yoshimura that opened to the public in 1971, we look forward to the years ahead, which will be defined by our digital and ideational impact through the kizuna that we build. Our future can only be enhanced by learning from our peers and engaging with our audiences, both near and far.

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Japan Society programs are made possible by leadership support from Booth Ferris Foundation and the New York State Council on the Arts with the support of the Office of the Governor and the New York State Legislature. Exhibitions and Arts & Culture Lecture Programs are made possible, in part, by Sompo Holdings, Inc.; the Lila Wallace-Reader's Digest Endowment Fund; the Mary Griggs Burke Endowment Fund established by the Mary Livingston Griggs and Mary Griggs Burke Foundation; The Masako Mera and Koichi Mera, PhD Fund for Education and the Arts; Peggy and Dick Danziger; and Friends of the Gallery. Support for Arts & Culture Lecture Programs is provided, in part, by the Sandy Heck Lecture Fund. Transportation assistance is provided by Japan Airlines, the official Japanese airline sponsor for Japan Society gallery exhibitions.