A general view of the 'Yokai Parade' exhibition at the MIACC Gallery, Malaysian Institute of Art in Kuala Lumpur, which features nearly 90s exhibits from Japan. Photo: The Star/Samuel Ong
Three-eyed monsters, a serpent with eight heads, a monster cat, slimy fish creatures and a freaky bugged-eyed spider. Not to forget a kimono-clad woman with a stretchable head. The roster of folk horror creatures from ancient times is a grotesque - yet intriguing - one at Yokai Parade: Supernatural Monsters From Japan, an art exhibition on Japanese folk culture.
This exhibition, which is currently showing at the MIACC Gallery, Malaysian Institute of Art (MIA) in Kuala Lumpur until Dec 3, offers visitors an accessible introduction to the world of yokai.
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Yokai Parade exhibition
A general view of the 'Yokai Parade' exhibition at the MIACC Gallery, Malaysian Institute of Art in Kuala Lumpur, which features nearly 90s exhibits from Japan. Photo: The Star/Samuel Ong
The roster of folk horror creatures from ancient times is a grotesque - yet intriguing - one at 'Yokai Parade: Supernatural Monsters From Japan', an art exhibition on Japanese folk culture. Photo: The Star/Samuel Ong
This tile block print describes the story of how, during the Edo period, a yokai monster called the 'Amabie' emerged from the sea of Higo provinces and prophesied a good harvest accompanied by a disease epidemic and told the people to draw the shape of the Amabie to ward off the disease. Photo: The Star/Samuel Ong
Visitors looking at a yokai picture scroll depicting various yokai running wild and rampant across washi paper that, at times, can measure over 10m long. Photo: The Star/Samuel Ong
In Japan, Daiei Film released several very popular yokai monster films beginning in 1965, including 'Spook Warfare, 1968' (left), 'Along With Ghosts, 1969' (centre), and 'One Hundred Spook Stories, 1968' (right). Photo: Japan Foundation Kuala Lumpur
Manga artist Mizuki Shigeru's 1984 take on the same tile block print of the 'Amabie' story from the Edo period. Photo: The Star/Samuel Ong
'Standing And Seated Yokai' statues were said to have been enshrined in the temples, yet the nature of their worship remains unknown. Photo: The Star/Samuel Ong
One of the highlights of the exhibition is the 'rokurokubi', a yokai woman to spook viewers with her stretchable neck. Photo: The Star/Samuel Ong
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