ACCIDENTALLY WES ANDERSON EXHIBITION IN TOKYO

HAPPENINGText: Alma Reyes

Many fans of the inventive filmmaker Wes Anderson will be delighted to step into the move-like photographic exhibition inspired by the director’s craftsmanship, “Accidentally Wes Anderson,” ongoing at the Warehouse Terrada G1 Building in Tennozu Isle until May 26th.


Exhibition entrance, Accidentally Wes Anderson exhibition, Photo: Alma Reyes

Anderson is famed for his atypical and whimsical directorial style as witnessed in the multi-awarded Rushmore (1998), The Royal Tenenbaums (2001), Moonrise Kingdom (2012), and the outstanding The Grand Budapest Hotel (2014), among many others. He grabbed international spotlight from his first film Bottle Rocket (1996), with Luke and Owen Wilson, and Rushmore with Bill Murray, which landed him a Best Director award. He was soon recognized for his unique visual and narrative approach, often stressing the dysfunctional facets of life, such as parental abandonment, marital affairs, or character delusion, all painted in colorful imagery, sometimes animated or scaled in miniature models. The Grand Budapest Hotel, with Ralph Fiennes, Jeff Goldblum, and Willem Dafoe, stands as one of Anderson’s most beloved films, comically interpreting the hues of fascism, friendship, and loyalty within the background of a mountainside resort in Europe. The cinematographic effects and theatrical portrayal that seemed to arise from a vintage storybook had been highly praised. The film garnered more than twenty global awards, including Best Motion Picture at the Golden Globe Awards in 2015.


Welcome Adventurers section, Accidentally Wes Anderson exhibition, Photo: Alma Reyes

Such fanfare surrounding Anderson’s creations had driven two travel enthusiasts and admirers of the director, Wally and Amanda Koval to form the social media community AWA (Accidentally Wes Anderson) in 2017 in Brooklyn, New York. The venture started as an Instagram account @accidentallywesanderson, where the couple would post photographs of eye-catching destinations they dreamed of visiting in their personal travel bucket list, and “accidentally” happen to look like locations from Anderson’s films. They reached out to the Instagram audience, which responded enormously with their own photographs of recommended sights. The social network has expectedly expanded to, as of this date, 1.8 million followers. Photo contributors have been called “adventurers” who range from travelers, architects, history buffs, artists, editors, photographers, to teachers, students, and all walks of life intrigued by the wonders of the world and civilization. Finally in 2020, AWA published the Accidentally Wes Anderson The Book, featuring 200 locations around the globe, mostly visualized in the exhibition.


Kaeson Station, Pyongyang Metro, Pyongyang, North Korea © Dave Kulesza (@davekulesza)

Stemming from the same exhibition held in Seoul, Korea in 2022, Accidentally Wes Anderson launched in Tokyo showcases more than 300 captivating photographs, organized in ten themes — Welcome Adventurers, Cities to Explore (European Classic, Arabian Nights, and Stars and Stripes), Colorful Collection, Relax in Nature, and so forth. Each section is decorated in individual colors, painting a playful palette of vibrant sceneries, like looking out the window of a train, bus or car. They surely allure viewers to explore different corners of the world, and engage in the stimulating tales and histories of each locality.

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