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The New teamLab Art Museum in Kyoto: Everything You Need To Know
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Why is teamLab Kyoto special?
If you’re wondering how the new Kyoto teamLab differs from teamLab Borderless: MORI Building DIGITAL ART MUSEUM and teamLab Planets TOKYO, here’s why it’s significant: teamLab Biovortex Kyoto will display new and unreleased artworks that cannot be seen anywhere else in Japan. Even more notably, at over 10,000 square meters, this teamLab will be one of the biggest in all of Japan.
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It’s not just the scale or the artworks, though: the concept of teamLab Biovortex Kyoto also differs slightly from the others. Its focus is on “transcending conventional notions of material substances”. This shift in emphasis means that the way visitors interact with some of the artworks also differs.
Insights from founder Toshiyuki Inoko
As a teamLab enthusiast myself, I had been eagerly waiting to see what this new teamLab had to offer. After speaking to the teamLab Founder, Toshiyuki Inoko, I got a bit more of an insight into his creativity and approach to art.
When discussing this new teamLab in Kyoto, Inoko expressed how he was excited for visitors to experience how “phenomena are born out of their environment, creating an order of energy that gives rise to new existence”. Many of the new installations he and the team have been working on question how “existence exists, in our cognition”. One example of such an installation is Massless Sun, Surface Boundary of an Emerged Space — the way we percieve the light doesn’t exist in reality.
Going into detail about his processes and the beginnings of teamLab, Inoko talked about how “humans have [long] been creating tangible objects,” but he “wanted to create something in a different way”. That’s why installations like the Massless Amorphous Sculpture are so significant in this teamLab universe. These are some of the first “sculptures”, suspended mid-air not by tangible objects, but by the environment created.
The art at teamLab Biovortex Kyoto
The museum is divided into four floors: Underground, Sculpture and Painting, Megaliths, and Athletics Forest. Like other teamLab museums, there is a suggested route to follow. However, you’re encouraged to loop around and revisit the artworks as many times as you like — whether for the experience or to capture more photos.
Just like the other teamLab art exhibitions, your body will quite tangibly become one with the art — but in new and unexpected ways. You get to immerse your body with all the unique environments in each installation.
Being located in traditional Kyoto, there are a few artworks that feel like an ode to the city’s history and legacy. Inoko told us that the bonsai tree at the entrance of the museum is one he sourced himself from the mountains of Kyoto. How cool is that?
Go Bar Hopping in Osaka [With Full Dinner]
Spend an evening exploring the bars in Osaka’s popular nightlife district of Namba. Sample tasty Japanese pub-style food, and wash it down with your choice of drinks, from sake to umeshu and beer — all in the company of a knowledgeable guide!
Floor: Underground
The majority of the artworks are in this section of the museum. From birds taking flight in front of your eyes to water flowing under your feet, this is a big world to explore:
- Continuous Life and Death
- Flow Reaches Far
- Flowers and People, Cannot be Controlled but Live Together
- Universe of Water Particles
- What a Loving, and Beautiful World
- Nirvana: Fleeting Flower, Shimmering Light
- Silent Radiance Within
- Memory of Waves in the Sky
- Morphing Continuum
- Levitation with Satellite
- Forest of Resonating Lamps: One Stroke — a Year in the Mountains
- Infinite Crystal World
- Crows are Chased and the Chasing Crows are Destined to be Chased as well
- Traces of Life
- The Eternal Universe of Words
- The Way of Birds
Visitors who have been to other teamLab exhibitions may recognize many of the installations in this section. However, Inoko and his team have revived several of these works. Also, a few of the artworks you won’t find anywhere else in the world.
Our personal favorites: Flowers and People, Cannot be Controlled but Live Together, Morphing Continuum, Infinite Crystal World, and Traces of Life.
Morphing Continuum
Morphing Continuum is one of the installations that has made its debut in Japan at teamLab Biovortex Kyoto. It is a visual feast. Beginning as individual elements — glowing spheres — separated in space and time, the components soon begin to work together, forming a mesmerizing single entity.
Similar to the Massless Amorphous Sculpture, even if you touch the structure, it cannot be broken. As the colorful array of spheres circles in mid-air, you’re presented with a display where boundaries dissolve and new forms of existence emerge.
Zoom Through Osaka in a Go-kart (Costume Included)
Feel like you are in a video game with this fun go-karting experience. Ideal for small groups, the tour allows you to explore Osaka in a unique and exciting way.
Forest of Resonating Lamps: One Stroke — a Year in the Mountains
If you were lucky enough to have visited the original teamLab Borderless in Odaiba between 2018 and 2022, then you may recognize this installation. The Forest of Resonating Lamps, now back at teamLab Biovortex Kyoto, features lamps that change color in response to human interaction. *This exhibition is our editor’s personal favorite.
Although they shouldn’t actually be touched, when a person stands close to a lamp, it will respond — emitting a certain color and sound.
The Way of Birds
In this installation, you can experience the beauty of thousands of birds taking flight. Moving as one giant life form, your body feels as though you are taking flight with them — going through all the motions and seeing flowers blossom as well.
Designed to portray “spatiotemporal existence”, this is one of the artworks where you should lie down and stare at the space around you to get the most of the experience.
Floor: Sculpture and Painting
There are two main works in this section, with the majority of them being new:
- Massless Amorphous Sculpture
- Ephemeral Abstract Life and Return
Massless Amorphous Sculpture
In my opinion, this installation is like nothing else and offers a new teamLab experience. Created to be an immense floating sculpture, this sea of bubbles (literally) transcends our concept of mass. It never directly touches the ceiling or the ground but instead, it drifts in the middle.
Interestingly, even if you touch the bubble and break it, it will restore itself back to its original shape. Comparable to an “ocean vortex”, stepping into this mystical, bubble-full world will bring you to another dimension — one where you question the way we interact with particular phenomena and environments.
Note: Those who are allergic to shampoo or certain body soaps are advised to not enter this particular room. Visitors have the option to buy protection gear, including ponchos and safety goggles, for a small additional fee.
Ephemeral Abstract Life and Return
There are two versions of this artwork: one you can interact with, and a more colorful alternative to simply admire. As you step onto the interactive piece, it responds with swirling movement. Step off, and it stops — thus exploring the relationship between humans, motions, and art.
Visitors over 13 years old can even walk through the artwork. Don’t worry, rental shoes are available.
Floor: Megaliths
This section invites visitors to question their interaction with light and the living environment. As you stroll through real-life moss, observe living water, and experience your own cognitive reactions to light, this space will especially appeal to those fascinated by science and nature.
- Megaliths
- Ephemeral Crystallized Rain
- Ephemeral Crystallized Drop
- Resonating Microcosms — Solidified Light Color
- Sea of Solidified Light
- Massless Sun, Surface Boundary of an Emerged Space
- Massless Suns and Darks Suns
- Spherical Crystallized Light
- Cognitive Solidified Spark
- Living Crystallized Light
- Strata of Traces
Megaliths
From our eyes, these gigantic structures represent different natural environments — from water to flowers. These megaliths sit on real-life moss, creating a mesmerizing environment.
Pro tip: Look out for the red and black orchids on the megaliths, something Inoko says is often missed.
Resonating Microcosms — Solidified Light Color
You may also recognize these ovoids from teamLab Planets. However, these ones differ, as you can interact with them by touching and walking through them. When pushed, an ovoid will shine brightly and emits sound.
Notably, these ovoids experiment with the concept of color — changing into a 32 newly defined “Solidified Light Colors”.
Massless Suns and Dark Suns
As you enter, you’ll experience “countless spheres of light and spheres of darkness”. This is one of the examples Inoko highlighted for us. The light appears as a mass, however, there is no material surface boundary — therefore, exploring the perception of the artwork and body.
Living Crystallized Light
As you walk across this water installation, it shines iridescently and moves around — merging and dividing in a continuous spectrum. This is another artwork created by a unique phenomenon. The iridescent light on the water doesn’t truly exist, but it will look different depending on where you stand.
Our personal favorites on this floor: Megaliths, Resonating Microcosms — Solidified Light Color and Living Crystallized Light.
Floor: Athletics Forest
If you have been to teamLab Planets TOKYO, you may recognize the Athletics Forest. This interactive playground, both for children and adults to enjoy, features a variety of movement-oriented, educational, and creative installations.
- Animals of Flowers: Symbiotic Lives — A Whole Year per Year
- Autonomous Abstraction
- A Table where Little People Live
- A Musical Wall where Little People Live
- A Window to the Universe where Little People Live
- Rapidly Rotating Bouncing Spheres in the Caterpillar House
- Flutter of Butterflies from the Caterpillar House
- Sketch Ocean
- Multi Jumping Universe
- Floating Cosmic Spheres
- Aerial Climbing through a Flock of Colored Birds
- Waterfall Droplets, Flowing Down a Slope
- Sliding through the Fruit Field
- Graffiti Nature
- Balance Stepping Stones in the Invisible World
- Forest of Flow and Light
Our personal favorites on this floor: Flutter of Butterflies from the Caterpillar House, Sketch Ocean, Multi Jumping Universe, Floating Cosmic Spheres, and Sliding through the Fruit Field.
Sketch Factory
Technically not counted as a floor, the Sketch Factory is where you can see your sketch creations, from Graffiti Nature and Sketch Ocean, come to life. For an additional price, you can make your colorful creation into a badge, magnet, tote bag, or t-Shirt, among other things.
Tickets for teamLab Kyoto
Tickets are currently on sale, for October 7, 2025 and onwards. You can get them on Klook, as well as from the official teamLab website. The prices are as follows:
- Adults: ¥3,400~ (dynamic pricing)
- 13-17 year olds: ¥2,800
- 4-12 year olds: ¥1,800
- Visitors with disabilities: 50% off the adult price
- Flexible Pass (admission time not specified): ¥12,000
How to book tickets
The easiest way to get tickets for teamLab Biovortex Kyoto is on Klook, or the official website.
How much time do you need for teamLab Biovortex Kyoto?
How much time you’ll need depends on how immersed you want to get in each artwork. With over 50 pieces to admire, a basic walk-through of the museum takes at least an hour or two. To get the most out of every installation, we recommend staying a minimum of 3 hours. Realistically, though, you’re likely to spend 4 to 5 hours here.
What to wear to teamLab Biovortex Kyoto?
It is recommended that you wear soft shoes — something like trainers is perfectly fine. Similar to the other teamLab exhibitions, you should avoid wearing high heels or heavy shoes.
It’s also best to avoid wearing anything too short. And, for the best photos, we recommend wearing light-colored clothes so that you stand out against the installations.
How to get there
teamLab Kyoto is an 7-minute walk from Kyoto Station.
Now you’ve seen teamLab Biovortex Kyoto, check out all the other teamLab art museums across Japan.
teamLab Biovortex Kyoto FAQs
Which is better: teamLab Kyoto or teamLab Tokyo?
Every teamLab offers something different and feels unique in its own right — even if some installations are repeated. However, if you have to pick, teamLab Kyoto offers almost everything the two teamLab museums in Tokyo have — and more. As mentioned, this new museum feels like a culmination of all the great art and achievements the collective has produced over the years.
Wait, isn’t Kyoto overcrowded? Will this museum be crazy busy?
Given that this will be the only permanent teamLab exhibition in Kyoto, you’re right in thinking that it will be popular. However, just like the teamLab exhibitions in Tokyo, as long as you plan ahead and get your tickets way in advance, you should be fine.
While we do our best to ensure it’s correct, information is subject to change. Post first published in August 2025. Last updated on September 30, 2025.
