teamLab Planets: Everything You Need To Know Before Going

As a former art school student, when I say that teamLab Planets in Tokyo is unlike any art museum I have ever been to is really saying something!

You know how everyone loses their mind over the Louvre Museum in Paris? I don’t get it. I mean, the glass pyramid is cool. It’s pretty amusing to witness the spectacle of tourists trying to get the typical IG-perfect shot in front of it. But the only piece you actually want to see – the infamous Mona Lisa – is ensconced behind protective glass so thick that it’s practically distorted.

Even if you manage to maneuver your way past the hoards of tourists to get up close and personal, it’s strictly a “Look but under NO CIRCUMSTANCES TOUCH” situation.

That is, unless you want to hidden snipers to rapel down from the rafters to escort you out.

Hey, to each their own.

That’s what makes the teamLab digital art museums so unique. Not only is there no such rule but the works of art were developed with the intention of being interacted with. The pieces are more wondrous because of audience participation – touching, moving, playing. Some pieces even have an accompanying scent!….or someone was wearing very strong perfume the day I went…

Currently there are two teamLab museums in Tokyo: Planets and Borderless. In order to do both justice, I’ve dedicated blog posts to each, starting with Planets.

teamLab Planets Info

📍 6 Chome-1-16 Toyosu, Koto City
🕙 10am – 7pm (Mon-Thu), 10am-9pm (Fri), 9am – 9pm (Sat), 9am – 7pm (Sun)
⏱️ Assigned Timeslots
⌛Temporary exhibit ending fall 2020
💶 3,200 ¥ (approx. $39 CAD)
🖥️ Buy tickets

What is teamLab Planets?

“teamlab” = A collective of artists, programmers, engineers, CG animators, mathematicians and architects who seek to explore where art, design, science, nature and technology overlap and intersect.

“Planets” = A temporary exhibition created by teamLab consisting of 4 vast spaces and 7 distinct artworks. The goal of these “body immersive” pieces were to blur the boundaries between the art and the body by almost dissolving into and experiencing the sensation of becoming part of it.

Tips + Tricks

🎟️ Buy tickets in advance: While it’s not as likely to be sold out, avoid disappointment by purchasing early. Tickets for Planets are available 1 month prior to the month you’ll be attending

🕙 Time slots: Planets is a much more orderly experience. When you buy your ticket, you choose an entry time that suits you. No need to strategize the best time to arrive!

🥿 No shoes allowed: You’re required to leave your shoes in provided lockers before entering the exhibit as you’ll be wading through water in many rooms. There are towels available to dry off after each.

👖Underwear is a must: With and abundance of mirrored floors, wearing underwear is a good idea…unless you don’t mind showing your undercarriage to the world. Wraps and shorts are available to rent for free.

🌊 Wear something you can roll above the knee: At some exhibits you’ll be walking through water that reaches as high as your knee so unless you don’t mind being wet, reconsider jeans.

👃 Use all of your senses: The teamLab exhibits were meant to be interacted and experienced with all of the senses. Touch the walls. Some rooms even had scents!

Locker room to leave everything, including your shoes.

Rooms at teamLab Planets:

Waterfall of Light Particles at the Top of an Incline

You begin the teamLab Planets experience by entering barefoot through a shallow stream of water at a slight slope towards a waterfall of light at the end of dark passage.

Soft Black Hole, where “Your Body Becomes a Space that Influences Another Body”

The title of this piece is extremely apt as it’s essentially a squishy pillow room. Attempt to make your way across the room or flop down and make yourself comfy amid pillow-soft hills and valleys as you sink into a malleable surface that reforms around you.

The Infinite Crystal Universe

This is one of the best known pieces at teamLab Planets and for good reason. Endless strings of lights hang down from an undefinable ceiling towards mirrored floors that gives the illusion of floating in a limitless chasm of sparkling crystals.

As you wander through the paths in awe, the lights twinkle in waves; undulating colours and patterns that you can influence by using the teamLab app. Without warning, all of the crystals would suddenly shimmer pure white, lighting up the room and making me catch my breath in awe.

Expanding Three-dimensional Existence in Transforming Space

From the moment I entered this expansive space filled with massive, bouncy spheres, I was cackling like a maniac.

As these light-filled globes came into physical contact, they’d gradate through a rainbow of colours that represent hues found in nature. They’d bob languidly around the room, seemingly defying gravity and blocking my every move.

Dancing on the Water Surface Created by the Dance of Koi and People

Hold on to your phones and roll up your pants! Wade into this calf-to-knee high water-based artwork with interactive flowers and koi fish projected onto its surface.

Kinda looks like I’m just knee deep in smoke but it’s water with lights projected on top!

The wall-to-wall mirrors extend the boundaries of the room, giving the impression that the milky waters – with its vibrant ribbons of light swirling in its depths – goes on forever. Poetically macabre, the koi will try to dart around your legs but will burst into a confetti of petals upon contact.

Floating in the Falling Universe of Flowers

Lie down on the mirrored floor (sensing a theme?) and let yourself become mesmerized by the galaxy of flowers projected on the large, domed ceiling. I was hypnotized (and a little nauseated) at the 360 degree sensation of being at the centre of a flower tornado.

Lying down in the eye of the storm of the Flower Universe

Cold Life

Fusing Japanese calligraphy and natural life, “Cold Life” can be found in a room off to the side. Witness the blending of colours and animations weaving together and reflecting off of the surface of the water surround it. Contemplate the unbreakable link between nature and human civilization that this piece represents.

How to Get To teamLab Planets

Located right between Ginza and Odaiba, take a 30-minute ride from Shinbashi Station on the Yurikamome Line and get off at Shin-Toyosu. teamLab Planets is right by the station.

You can also catch the Toei Bus (route 5-2) from Ginza Station from the Ginza Yonchome stop headed for Big Sight. You’ll reach Shin-Toyosu after about 14 minutes.

Nearby

Arrange your teamLab Planets time slot to be in the early afternoon and spend the morning exploring the Toyosu Market nearby and grab a sashimi lunch. There’s also The Bowl Restaurant right next door that serves everything from steak to seafood if you’re hungry after the museum.

Why Go To teamLab Planets

The most frequently asked question when it comes to teamLab is probably “Should I go to Planets or Borderless?” My answer is that you should go to both. But not everyone has the luxury of time so here are some points that may sway you in favour of Planets.

Size: If you’re short on time, with 4 vast exhibitions and 7 works of art, you’ll be able to wander through teamLab Planets at a leisurely pace in about an hour (in comparison to 2-3 hours you’ll spend at Borderless).

Crowd: Thanks to scheduled time slots, teamLab Planets is blissfully less crowded so the likelihood that you’ll get photos without someone wandering into the background is higher.

Permanence: Japan is definitely the kind of place you’ll want to visit again and again so strategically, I’d visit Planets as the exhibit is temporary, ending fall 2020. Borderless is permanent.

Stay tuned for next week’s blog post where I detail everything you need to know about teamLab’s other Tokyo-based exhibit: Borderless. If you’re trying to decide whether to go to teamLab Planets or Borderless, hold off on any decision-making until after you read both.

If you’re going to Japan for the first time, here are some essential tips for you to take note of before going.

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