In Tokyo, Resident Evil moves from the screen to the gallery
· BehindLines newsroom
In Tokyo, an exhibition marking thirty years of Resident Evil opened on 30 October in the Shibuya district, according to its organiser, Tohokushinsha. Presented with the cooperation and supervision of Capcom, it is scheduled to run until 24 December at the BEAM gallery. Organiser's press release.
Known in Japan as Biohazard, the series is the common thread of a route devoted to its worlds and to how they were made. The first game dates from 1996. The anniversary makes it possible to gather material from several instalments rather than being limited to a single story.
The official website describes a path through images, installations and character figures. One section revisits the fictional events that structure the games; another uses a large screen to place them in chronological order. Presentation of the route.
In its preview of 28 October, Time Out Tokyo highlights the presence of development documents and life-size sculptures. The outlet mentions Leon S. Kennedy and Albert Wesker in particular. It also describes a seated representation of Lady Dimitrescu reaching about 2.9 metres. Time Out preview.
The route thus brings creative materials together with their translation into physical space. The figures give the characters a physical scale, while the documents allow visitors to return to design choices. It is this circulation between screen, object and archive that gives the anniversary a cultural angle.
The organiser also presents items linked to Resident Evil Requiem, including an accessory worn by the character Victor Gideon. The whole therefore connects the history of the series to a recent instalment, without requiring visitors to follow a single order of play.