“Deeply Moved by an Otherworldly Journey” Actor Tao Tsuchiya says; Artistically Directed by Kenji Kohashi. Program Includes a New Work by Yoichi Ochiai and the Japan Debut of GAIA; Viewing Area Advance Registration Opens.
Tokyo, Japan, 4th May 2026 – The Tokyo International Projection Mapping Award Executive Committee is pleased to announce that TOKYO LIGHTS 2026, a creative festival of light illuminating Tokyo’s nights, will be held from Saturday, May 23 to Sunday, May 31, 2026, at the Tokyo Metropolitan Government No. 1 Building, Citizens’ Plaza and the Nishi-Shinjuku area (including Shinjuku Chuo Park)
The Committee is also pleased to announce that actor Tao Tsuchiya has been appointed official ambassador for TOKYO LIGHTS 2026. In addition, the Committee is unveiling the full lineup of 12 planned works for Light Art Park, the event’s light art program under the artistic direction of Kenji Kohashi. The program will bring together notable works from Japan and abroad, including a new installation by Yoichi Ochiai, the Japan debut of GAIA, and legacy works from Expo 2025 Osaka, Kansai. Viewing Area Advance Registration Now Open via official website!
Official Ambassador
The Committee is pleased to announce the appointment of actor Tao Tsuchiya as the official ambassador for TOKYO LIGHTS 2026. Widely supported across generations and known for continually taking on new creative challenges, Ms. Tsuchiya will help promote the event and will also appear at the Grand Finale on Sunday, May 31, 2026.
Comment from Tao Tsuchiya: “My first encounter with TOKYO LIGHTS was in 2022. I was deeply moved by the experience, which felt as though I had traveled into another world, and since then my family and I have visited every year. It is a great honor to now take on the role of ambassador. Projection mapping and light art connect people and connect generations and perhaps may even connect us to the universe. I believe they hold limitless possibilities. I hope to share this experience with many people at the venue.”
Born in Tokyo on February 3, 1995, Tao Tsuchiya made her film debut in Tokyo Sonata (2008) and rose to national prominence after being cast as the heroine of NHK’s morning drama series Mare (2015). Since then, she has built a wide-ranging career across film, television, stage, and animation, with more than 37 starring works as of 2026. Recognized for her solid acting ability, she has received the Newcomer of the Year Award at the 39th Japan Academy Awards, the Award for Excellent Actress in a Leading Role at the 41st Japan Academy Awards, and the Award for Excellent Actress in a Supporting Role at the 48th Japan Academy Awards. She is also widely praised for her dance and action performances, which draw on her strong physical abilities. In recent years, she has actively taken on new creative challenges in scriptwriting, planning, directing, and music, and incorporated projection mapping into a staged reading of her original script. Her upcoming releases include Matching TRUE LOVE (autumn) and SUKIYAKI Ue o Muite Aruko (December 25). She is currently appearing in TV Asahi’s Borderless: Wide Area Mobile Investigation Unit.
Five Themes of VISIBLE TOKYO
Under the concept of VISIBLE TOKYO, TOKYO LIGHTS 2026 presents five themes through which visitors can experience the city in light: Visible CITY, Visible NATURE, Visible HEART, Visible CONNECTION, and Visible IMAGINATION. Through these themes, the event seeks to visualize the many elements that shape Tokyo—its urban landscape, nature, emotions, human connections, and creativity—through the shared language of light.
Visible CITY expresses Tokyo itself through light, including the flow of the city, traffic, signs of human presence, and data.
Visible NATURE presents installations that evoke the breath of nature and the subtle movements of life.
Visible HEART features artworks that project emotions, memories, and lingering traces of feeling as light.
Visible CONNECTION explores interfaces of light linking the city and nature, and people and the city.
Visible IMAGINATION offers participatory and immersive expressions designed to stimulate creativity and inspiration.
Light Art Park
For a limited period, Light Art Park will transform Shinjuku Chuo Park into an immersive environment of light art. Under the artistic direction of Kenji Kohashi, who has led numerous international events and large-scale festivals including Expo 2025 Osaka, Kansai, artists from Japan and overseas will depict the “invisible Tokyo” through light.
Light Art Park is organized around four themes—Visible CITY, Visible NATURE, Visible HEART, and Visible CONNECTION. Throughout the venue, visitors will encounter works that give physical form to these themes, allowing them to experience the world of VISIBLE TOKYO as they walk through the park.
Featured 5 Works
GAIA / Visible HEART / Lawn Area (East) / Luke Jerram / United Kingdom
Courtesy of Light Art Collection
Making its highly anticipated Japan debut—an immersive experience of viewing Earth from space
Created by Luke Jerram, known for works that cross artistic disciplines, GAIA is a monumental Earth installation at seven meters in diameter. Produced using high-resolution NASA imagery of the Earth’s surface, the work offers an immersive experience akin to viewing the planet from space. The installation will make its Japan debut at TOKYO LIGHTS 2026.
Embrace / Visible CITY / Fun More Time Hiroba / Beamhacker / Australia
Human connection expands outward as ripples of light
This participatory installation by Beamhacker, known for interactive works combining light and mirrors, invites visitors to join hands with the human-shaped silhouettes arranged around the piece. As they do so, ripples of light spread outward in a chain reaction, and the installation becomes increasingly dynamic through communication and cooperation among participants.
Liquid Universe: Sōbō Chūfu — An Unclassifiable Entomologia of the Luminous Swarm / Visible CONNECTION / Chobo-no-Mori / Yoichi Ochiai / Japan
A new installation by Yoichi Ochiai, where the lights of nature and the city intersect.
Created for TOKYO LIGHTS 2026 by Yoichi Ochiai, this new installation brings together different forms of light found in nature and in the city—such as fireflies, bioluminescent organisms, and LEDs—within a four-meter pillar of light. Amid imagery continuously generated by computational nature, the work invites visitors to reconsider the boundary between the natural and the artificial.
Visible TOWER / Visible CITY / Fun More Time Hiroba / V_T / Japan
This tower-shaped installation visualizes the memories and everyday activities of people passing through the city as “memories of light.” During the day, it reflects the surrounding urban landscape and its visitors like a mirror; at night, AI-generated collages of the city’s memories appear on an LED display. Visitors may also walk through the sculpture itself and experience these “memories of light” at close range.
V_T：YAMACHANG / Kenji Kohashi / Naoya Murayama
INTER-WORLD/Cocooner: Apparent motion of celestial bodies
/ Visible NATURE / Hana-no-Mori / Akihito Okunaka / Japan
A legacy work from Expo 2025 Osaka, Kansai that evokes the cycles of nature
This experiential work was exhibited as an official program of Study: Osaka Kansai International Art Festival 2025 at Expo 2025 Osaka, Kansai. Through a soft sculptural form that amplifies natural phenomena created by the interaction of air, water, and sunlight, the work encourages visitors to reflect on how human beings are connected to the world. Visitors are invited to step inside and experience being enveloped by cocoons of changing light.
Additional Works and Open Call Program
In addition to the featured works above, Light Art Park will include a range of other installations, including Seeds of Light— Egg of Hope, first exhibited at Burning Man in the Nevada desert in the United States; Photosynthesis, in which FLIGHTGRAF, a headliner at one of Europe’s leading light festivals, depicts the breathing cycle of plants; and TOKYO Hyakka Ryōran, which likens Tokyo’s individuality to a giant blooming flower. Throughout the venue, visitors will encounter light-based expressions that resonate with both the city and nature.
As opportunities to present light art in public spaces in Japan remain limited, the event has also held an open call and will exhibit works by emerging artists and students selected through the screening process. Through these efforts, TOKYO LIGHTS 2026 aims to help foster a new generation of artists and creators working in light-based expression.
1minute Projection Mapping Competition
The 1minute Projection Mapping Competition is one of the world’s most established and prestigious international projection mapping competitions, originating in Japan since 2012. Each year, creators compete for top honors with works running from one minute to one minute fifty-nine seconds. Bringing together leading creators from around the world as well as rising young talent, the competition offers a unique opportunity in Japan to experience a wide range of highly accomplished and distinctive works in one place.
The competition invited entries under the theme “Dialogue”. A total of 412 entries were received from 65 countries and regions around the world. Finalists selected from among these entries will compete for the Grand Prix.
Jury Member and Invited Artist
Ouchhh / Digital Media Artist / Turkey
Kentaro Tanaka / Video Creator / Graphic Designer (Winner of the previous competition) / Japan
MCs for the International Competition Awards Ceremony
Tetsuya Bessho / Actor; Representative of Short Shorts Film Festival & Asia
Aki Shibuya / Bilingual MC; Journalist
Official Website of the 1minute Projection Mapping Competition:
https://1minute-pm.com/
Event Overview: TOKYO LIGHTS 2026
TOKYO LIGHTS is a festival of light born in 2021 that illuminates Tokyo’s nights. Centered on an international projection mapping competition featuring creators from around the world and experiential entertainment that fuses light, art, and technology, the event sends a message of creativity and hope toward the future.
Event Title: TOKYO LIGHTS 2026
Venues:
Tokyo Metropolitan Government Building No.1, Tokyo Citizen’s Plaza
(2-8-1 Nishi-Shinjuku, Shinjuku-ku, Tokyo 160-0023)
Shinjuku Chuo Park
(2-11 Nishi-Shinjuku, Shinjuku-ku, Tokyo)
Dates (scheduled):
Saturday, May 23 to Sunday, May 31, 2026
1minute Projection Mapping Competition
- Screenings: Saturday, May 23; Sunday, May 24; and Sunday, May 31, 2026
- Screenings / Awards Ceremony: Saturday, May 30, 2026
Light Art Park
Saturday, May 23 to Sunday, May 31, 2026
Grand Finale
Sunday, May 31, 2026
Organizer:
Projection Mapping International Award TOKYO Executive Committee
Co-host:
Tokyo Metropolitan Government
Official Website: https://tokyolights.jp
Social Media:
X: https://x.com/tokyolights_jp
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/tokyolights_jp/
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/tokyolights.jp
YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@tokyolightsjp
Inquiries Regarding Event Details and Tickets
TOKYO LIGHTS 2026 Call Center
TEL: +81-3-6706-7972
Hours: 10:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. on weekdays only
(excluding weekends and public holidays)
Media Contact
Organization: TOKYO LIGHTS 2026 PR Office (Antil Inc.)
Contact Person: Ishida
Website: https://tokyolights.jp
Email: Send Email
Contact Number: +81368217863
City: Tokyo
Country:Japan
Release id:44582
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