Opening today! “Science and Art Hill 2025,” a citizen-led
international festival originating from Matsudo: Featured artist exhibits and highlights centered around the Tojo Residence area Science and Art Hill Executive Committee Press Release: October 24, 2025 Opening today! “Hill of Science and Art 2025,” a citizen-led international festival originating from Matsudo, features exhibits by prominent artists and highlights centered around the Tojo Residence area. International collaboration programs and workshops will be held centered around the Tojo Residence area. A new area, Matsudo Central Park, is also included.
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https://prcdn.freetls.fastly.net/release_image/87671/17/87671-17-f6d58a68118b8c16fdf1f152584c1bf1-3008×1956.jpg An international science art project connecting Switzerland and Japan will be held at “Science and Art Hill 2025.” The “world of
microorganisms” will be explored through two approaches. The first is an introduction to the exhibition “INVISIBLES: The Hidden World of Microorganisms,” jointly organized by the Swiss National Center for Research on Microbiome (NCCR Microbiome) and the Musée de la Main in Lausanne, Switzerland. It showcases the diverse roles played by microorganisms, from the evolution of life to the human body, the environment, soil, and plants. The other is “The Garden Experiment,” a research project involving approximately 300 citizens from both countries. In this experiment, participants cultivate soil samples in their own gardens and fields and observe and analyze changes in microbial diversity. The results are scheduled to be unveiled at next year’s festival. Through these activities, we will ask questions such as “How do microorganisms support the health and diversity of the Earth and human body, and what is happening to the environment around us?” ■Anca Benera & Arnold Estefan in collaboration with Pavel Brăila《Floral Whispers》 [In cooperation with the Austrian Cultural Forum] *Imagine Climate Dignity Award-winning work
https://prcdn.freetls.fastly.net/release_image/87671/17/87671-17-4f613e0bfcd6d23cc0d36421d505ae46-2961×1925.jpg Floral Whispers attempts to document the natural world that is being lost due to climate change. This project, by Vienna-based Anca Benera & Arnold Estefan and Berlin-based Pavel Brăila, travels across Europe to collect and archive pollen from endangered plants. The exhibition features color samples based on the colors of pollen, as well as sound pieces engraved on beeswax records, created with a focus on the vibrations made when bees touch flowers. The beeswax is scraped away each time the record is played, and the sound eventually fades away. This quiet attempt to visualize the memories of vanishing life and environments lies between science and poetry. ■Domestic Data Streamers《Synthetic Memories》 [Ars Electronica Selection] *Double winner of the Ars Electronica Award for Digital Humanity and the S T ARTS Prize Honorary Mention 2025
https://prcdn.freetls.fastly.net/release_image/87671/17/87671-17-938404de376287ccf187219a7d9c2de3-2974×1934.jpg Synthetic Memories is a project that uses AI technology to reconstruct lost memories. By combining interviews with generative AI,
participants’ memories are reconstructed as images. Memories are not reconstructed as precise photographs, but as vague images accompanied by emotions and impressions. Natalia Santolaria and Airi Dordas (both of Domestic Data Streamers) say, “Rather than recreating reality, we want to revive subjective memories that remain in the mind.” This project, which uses dialogue to retrieve memories lost due to disasters, war, forced relocation, cultural taboos, and other factors, creates generative images. It is also currently being applied to dementia therapy and public services. At the intersection of technology and emotion, this project quietly reexamines the power and meaning of memory, a data uniquely human.
https://prcdn.freetls.fastly.net/release_image/87671/17/87671-17-d389c26ee516527c18b3f3cea2171acf-2784×1810.jpg ▲From right: Airi Dordas and Natalia Santolaria (both Domestic Data Streamers) ■Ars Electronica Futurelab, Wacom, TOA《Life Ink Community》 【Ars Electronica Selection】
https://prcdn.freetls.fastly.net/release_image/87671/17/87671-17-130929ca7fc88bc1ea653692960f2f72-2792×1816.jpg ▲A demonstration of the biosensor. From right: Teruyuki Kake (Wacom) and Satoshi Miyata (TOA) The Life Ink Community uses the body itself as a “pen” to express creativity. This project was jointly developed by Ars Electronica Futurelab, Wacom, and TOA. Wearable biosensors detect body signals such as brainwaves, electromyography, and sweating, and visualize them in space as digital ink strokes. Yoko Shimizu (Co-founder and Global Advisor of Science and Art Hill), a member of the team, explains, “This system allows even people who can’t hold a pen to ‘draw’ their creativity.” The system, which also incorporates sound and resonates with physical reactions, is also expanding into collaborative projects with people with disabilities. In this exhibition, two people can simultaneously experience a mechanism that changes the work through interaction. Visitors can experience with their own bodies the “language of creativity” where technology and sensibility intersect.
https://prcdn.freetls.fastly.net/release_image/87671/17/87671-17-d4280c506ba2e254206870b8356620ff-2827×1839.jpg ■DLX Design Lab, University of Tokyo; Laboratory of Veterinary Animal Behavior, University of Tokyo; Hiroyoshi Hara “Rats in the City”
https://prcdn.freetls.fastly.net/release_image/87671/17/87671-17-f64a3f36a26cfbadc57e2452c4842651-3008×2000.jpg Rats scurry through the corners of cities. This exhibition, “Rats in the City,” explores their existence through the power of science, design, and photography. A collaboration between the University of Tokyo’s DLX Design Lab, the Laboratory of Veterinary Animal Behavior, and photographer Hara, this exhibition explores the true nature of rats living in urban ecosystems from multiple angles. The exhibition presents a three-dimensional view of the relationship between rats and cities through exhibits that allow visitors to experience the scents of rats’ “peace pheromones” and “alarm pheromones,” as well as a life-size model of a 3D scanned nest and photographic works. “Rats are not simply targets for extermination; they exist alongside cities. I want to think about cities through rats and gradually change people’s perceptions of them,” says Shota Kiuchi (DLX Design Lab, University of Tokyo), whose words sum up the entire exhibition. ■The University of Tokyo DLX Design Lab, The University of Tokyo Applied Entomology Laboratory《Tabemaru》
https://prcdn.freetls.fastly.net/release_image/87671/17/87671-17-b0d360a132c0f806638def8a7a78cc55-3008×2000.jpg Tabemaru is a food composting project designed to bring food waste recycling closer to people. While conventional composting requires the use of microorganisms and takes weeks to months, this device uses black soldier fly larvae to decompose food waste in just a few dozen hours, demonstrating an efficient and sustainable recycling system. To reduce aversion to insects and food waste, the device was designed with a gentle, terrarium-like appearance. This time, it will be exhibited at the “Oka no Marche” venue, allowing visitors to more intuitively experience the everyday act of “eating” and the recycling process of “returning.” ■Mayu Miki × Naoyuki Ishikita*, Medical Device Innovation Laboratory, Clinical Research Department, National Hospital Organization Niigata Hospital {“Tohoku Omohoyu” – Entry for the KYOTO STEAM International Art Competition 2022} *Titles are current as of 2022
https://prcdn.freetls.fastly.net/release_image/87671/17/87671-17-9eea3d603195076faf7b72d5a2d06fa2-2878×1871.jpg “Tohoku Omohoyu” is an installation that combines medical technology with the act of prayer. A collaborative project between artist Mayu Miki and physician Naoyuki Ishikita, the installation is based on a 3D-printed ventilator. Amid a worldwide shortage of ventilators amid the COVID-19 pandemic, Miki reconstructed the prototype designed by Ishikita as a work that reexamines the very act of “breathing.” Eighteen ventilators are lined up in the venue, creating a sound installation with six harmonies each. The title of the work
incorporates the archaic meaning of “making the distant seem natural.” As Miki says, “thinking of the distant is a form of prayer that has been passed down since ancient times,” this exhibition quietly visualizes the “breath of life” that flows between medicine, art, and people.
https://prcdn.freetls.fastly.net/release_image/87671/17/87671-17-75c196ece292f8af732790805f49b6d7-3008×1956.jpg ▲Artist Mayu Miki Director’s Comment ■Tetsuno Iwasawa, Co-Director (Social Strategy & Regional Collaboration)
https://prcdn.freetls.fastly.net/release_image/87671/17/87671-17-dc20ed73e1a17c6e6cd84da98a9aadb4-3008×2000.jpg Science and Art Hill is an international festival that began in 2018, connecting science, art, and nature. This year, many catalyst events will be held throughout the city, centered around the main venue, Tojogaoka. Additionally, we will be opening a new area, Matsudo Central Park in Sagamidai. This year’s theme is “Delta of Creativity.” As the delta symbol symbolizes, we believe the richness of creativity lies not in a single answer, but in the questions and expressions that arise in the gaps between them. We hope you will enjoy this
multi-layered form of creativity through this festival, which brings together a diverse range of works. ■Rintaro Unno, Co-Director (Creative Direction & Curation)
https://prcdn.freetls.fastly.net/release_image/87671/17/87671-17-6b11d2edaaba6657eedf62ec9f78bad4-2976×1935.jpg This year’s theme, “Delta of Creativity,” was inspired by the image of connecting the three points of a triangle: science, art, and nature. The festival itself was originally established as a place to connect these three fields. The architecture of the Tojo House, the main venue, blurs the boundary between inside and outside, allowing the wind, birdsong, and the atmosphere of nature to permeate the exhibition space. This type of space allows works that cross the boundaries of technology, art, and nature to emerge even more vividly. I believe that both the memory-themed sessions and the sound works will be perceived in new ways by being located here. “Science and Art Hill” will be held in Matsudo. Matsudo Central Park, a newly added venue, will feature a variety of creative experiences, including artist exhibitions, workshops, talks, a market, and a stamp rally around the city. The main venue, Tojogaoka Historical Park, will host a “Hill Marché,” a gathering of creative shops and cafes, fostering interaction between people and the unique culture of Matsudo. In addition, “Catalyst Events” will be held in various locations around Matsudo City, exhibiting and selling products, services, and artwork inspired by the event’s theme, “Δ.” “Science and Art Hill” is an international festival planned and run primarily by local residents. Connecting science and art, everyday life and creativity, the interaction of diverse people gives rise to new forms of expression. Please join us for three days as the entire city of Matsudo becomes a “place where creativity blossoms.” 《Information》 Science and Art Hill 2025 Dates: October 24th (Fri) and 25th (Sat), 2025, 10:00 AM – 4:30 PM, October 26th (Sun), 10:00 AM – 4:00 PM Venue: Matsudo City, Chiba Prefecture (Tojo Residence, Shountei, Tojogaoka Historical Park, various locations in Matsudo City) Admission: General 1,000 yen, high school and university students 900 yen, Matsudo City Resident Discount 500 yen
(residents/workers/students), free for junior high school students and younger *Same-day tickets for general admission, high school students, and university students are an additional 500 yen *Separate
reservations are required to participate in talks, workshops, etc. Organized by: Matsudo City, Science and Art Hill Executive Committee Planned and managed by: Science and Art Hill Executive Committee Partners: Science and Technology Section of the Embassy of Switzerland in Japan, Austrian Cultural Forum Tokyo, NCCR Microbiome, Microbial Systems Emergence Research Team, Biomanufacturing Research Center, National Institute of Advanced Industrial Science and Technology (AIST) Supported by: Ars Electronica, Nomura Laboratory of Applied Entomology, Faculty of Horticulture, Chiba University, Shishi Grand Prix Executive Committee, Art E-Ticket, Tojo Festival Executive Committee, Matsudo Art Picnic Executive Committee Project funding: Sakae Stünzi Foundation
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