A touchy-feely exhibition of Japanese art

Shokkan: Material Encounters in Japanese Art

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Opens April 4, ROM

ART Museum signage is forever admonishing patrons to “look, don’t touch.” But an exhibition of Japanese art coming to the ROM this month encourages the opposite. Showcasing the Japanese concept of shokkan, or the psychological impression of touch, the show features more than 80 touchable pieces including ceramics, textiles and carvings. (The most frag- ile ones are behind glass, but there are replicas you can handle.) Curator Akiko Takesue has been at the helm of the museum’s 10,000-piece-and- growing Japanese collection since 2021 and is the mastermind behind the exhibition. Here, she tells us about four of her favourite objects.