Review: teamLab Borderless

So, what’s this place about?

With the first iteration of Borderless, in Odaiba, the art collective Teamlab created an endlessly Instagrammable, sumptuous, and surreal museum dedicated to multi-sensory digital art. Opened in 2018, the facility, which set the world record for the most visited museum dedicated to a single artist, closed its doors in 2022. However, Borderless 2.0 is set to relocate to a permanent location in the soon-to-open Azabudai Hills mixed-use complex in central Tokyo in early 2024.

How’s the space?

Boderless consists of installations that feature constantly morphing patterns and designs that seem to flow seamlessly from room to room in a maze-like space. Updated versions of some of the museum’s previous works will be on display, as well as several new installations: a room filled with hundreds of multicolored lights that run along tracks continuously and a series of interactive “light sculptures,” to name a few.

Did you meet anyone on staff? Did they make an impression?

You can expect to find a fair number of families with children, as well as anyone with an Instagram or Tik Tok account. International tourists made up half of the 2.3 million annual visitors to the Teamlab Borderless Museum in Odaiba and will likely do the same at the new location.

At the end of the day, what is this place best for?

The museum will be located on the premises of the sprawling Azabudai Hills, slated to open in November 2023. The new complex will combine offices, residences, the first Janu hotel by Aman, an international school, high-end shopping, and restaurants amid the property’s 2.4 hectares of green space.