What kind of presence do animals have for us in the modern world? Looking back over the history of humankind, animals have constantly been by our sides, as important family members and companions, as dangerous enemies threatening our lives, and as sacred spirits beyond human understanding and as their messengers. As well, animals continue to play a special, indispensable role not only in our spiritual lives, but also in our physical lives in the form of hunting, agriculture and livestock farming. However, this relationship with animals nurtured over time has not always been full of harmony. In fact, today, due to the impact on the global ecosystem of advances in civilization and in science and technology, the connections between humans and animals are being lost and in the process falling into disarray.

All Living Things reexamines the complex relationship between modern humans and animals through the diverse artistic expression of 14 artists on the theme of animals. All manner of encounters with strange animals born out of the human imagination—including paintings and sculptures, photographs, videos, manga and poetry—await you at the museum. Perhaps the vital energy and dynamism of the artworks will help unravel the norms and stereotypes that have contributed to human society’s estrangement of animals, offering a clue to connecting once more.

The preciousness of life that is present in all living things alike. Hurdling the boundaries and gracefully coming and going between human society and nature, the everyday and fantasy, these animals may even reawaken us to the chain of life and to life’s essential value.