A week before the Tokyo Olympics commence, a giant human-faced balloon was seen floating over Tokyo’s skyline as part of the 2021 Tokyo Tokyo Festival. The cultural art festival was planned by the contemporary art team ‘me’ to take place alongside this year’s Olympics event.
Masayume, the mysterious-faced balloon, stands for “a dream that becomes reality” which was inspired by a dream that team member Haruka Kojin had when she was in middle school. The face of the balloon was chosen from about 1,400 people all over the world regardless of age, gender, or nationality. The identity of the face has remained undisclosed.
Standing about 6 to 7 stories high, Masayume was flown from the Yoyogi Park from 6:00 AM to 8:00 PM on July 16, which stunned the citizens of Tokyo. Some have recalled scenes from the anime TV series Attack on Titan while others made comparisons to the horror story Kubitsuri Kikyu (The Hanging Balloons).
For more details about the Masayume, head over to the official website.
Elsewhere in the Tokyo Olympics, culture meets sport in the first-ever Olympic Agora.
